Creator Chronicles: Consanguinity
by Viperwatcher
Summary: N'kev 'Xem. The child that inherited his father's power. This time we follow his story that began from graduation to an unnerving fact about himself. Also an enemy that never gave up stirs trouble. COMPLETE. Sequel to CC: Life.
1. Chapter Prologue

**Hey guys wassup, Viperwatcher here! As I said I will make a sequel to CC: Life and here it is. All characters will return along with new characters. If you haven't read CC: Life I recommend you do so before you read this. There will be some cameo appearances as well. Keep in mind that there may be plot holes that you may noticed and I would like to assure you I'm covering all of them up as best as I can. I would also like to thank my younger sister (12 years old) for giving me the main plot for this fan fiction.  
**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

**Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.**

**NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.**

**Without further delay here is the prologue for my story:**  
**Creator Chronicles: Consanguinity**

* * *

Chapter 1 Prologue

_There was mist and fog as the sun cracked at the morning dawn. 2 figures can be seen trekking up the mountain towards the summit. The 2 slowly made progress as they traversed up the majestic mountain. The morning dew was quite visible on the fauna around the mountain._

_ As they made their way upwards, Urs, Fied, and Joori the 3 suns of Sanghelios slowly crawl there way up towards the sleepy sky. _

_ "How much farther?" ask one of the men._

_ "Not far now, son." answered the father._

_ "Ugh… I hate this." complained the son._

_ "Stop that. You should be grateful you can still do this." said the father._

_ "ok." responded the son._

_ They eventually reached the summit which was covered with thick fog. It was freezing cold but they brought the right equipment with them. They moved along the forest, which was on top of the mountain, and found a break in the trees. They approached it and the Son was mesmerized at the sight that was in front of it._

_ "Wow." he said. The sight was breathtaking. _

_ "This, son, is our state." said the father. _

_ In front of them was a beautiful city. It showed the amazing buildings of their race. At the distance they could see some of the cars moving about and the state starting to stir from its sleepy slumber. The son took a step forwards the cliff edge. _

_ "Be careful." warned the father. The son nodded and enjoyed the sight in front of him. He took a deep breath as the cool and fresh air filled his lungs. It was like being in paradise; the perfect spot to take a rest and enjoyed the sight._

_ "Ok this is enough. We have to go back now." said the father and he turned around. The son took one last look at the scenery in front of him. It was all to relaxing to leave but they had to. He turned around on his hoof but then he heard a sound. He looked around to where it came from. He realized it was at his footing and noticed that the cliff edge he was stepping onto was giving way due to the weight. _

_ Before he could even react the rock underneath him collapsed. The father turned around just in time to see his son fall, towards impending death. He quickly ran to him and held out his hand. It was like in slow motion. Their hands were inches from one another… But the effort was futile. The father watched as his son fell down from the cliff towards his utter death. _

_ He shouted in agony as he saw his son die right in front of him. The son screamed in horror as he plunged down to the foggy abyss below. Along the way his head hit something hard and he was knocked unconscious…_

*****

N'kev eyes snapped open. He sat bolt upright as it was the natural response for a person when they had a dream about falling. He breathed in and out for a few seconds and realized it was only a dream. But it was far too vivid to be one. He was sweating profusely.

_'Why am I having these dreams?' _he asked himself.

_'I don't even know the 2 people there.'_ he thought. He just shrugged it off and looked at the clock near the wall. It read 4:00 AM.

_'At least I walked up at the right time.' _he thought as he stood up. He could hear his roommates snore faintly. He considered waking his best friend up but stopped as he thought he should get some more rest. He went to the locker near his bed and took out his dress robes.

Today was a big day and an important one too. He looked around his common room. Almost everyone was asleep in their bunk beds, sleeping here for the last time. He folded his dress robe and headed for the showers. He went into the men's, opened a locker and placed his clothes in them. To N'kev's delight there was no one in the showers since he was early. This he liked a lot since he was keeping a _secret_. He undressed his clothes and placed them in lockers as well.

He went to the showers but stopped as he passed a couple of mirrors on top of the sink. He paused and looked at his reflection. He was no longer the child he remembered himself. His body had completely changed. His eyes darted to a particular scar on his chest. It was the Creator Scar. That was his _secret_; it's also the reason why he showers so early.

He sighed as he looked at it. '_How long has it been since that day?'_ He thought for a moment before answering his own question.

_'Wow… Eight years already.' _he sighed again and went to the showers.

A lot can happen in less than eight years.

* * *

**Author's Notes: If you don't understand it at first, don't worry I wrote it that way. You'll be able to understand things at the next chapter**.

**If you like what you read and want more, please favorite the story and the author,  
subscribe for story to story alert and please leave some reviews.**


	2. Chapter Initiation

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

**Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.**

**NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.**

* * *

**Chapter 2 Initiation**

Shipmaster R'tas Vadum sat onto gravity chair at the bridge. The _Shadow of Intent_ was reaching its destination after a skirmish mission against the loyalist. One would think in under 8 years they would have stopped fighting, but unfortunately they were still alive and kicking. Although during the course of time they weakened, they gradually got stronger again and made more resistance.

"What's the ETA?" asked R'tas. A sangheili working the controls answered him,

"We'll be reaching Sangheilios in just 1 hour sir."

"Very well." said R'tas.

The bridge doors open and a Sangheili wearing dress robes walked in. It was Thel Vadam.

"What brings you to the bridge, Arbiter, and what are you wearing?" asked R'tas.

"Dress robes, and I would like to ask what time will we arrive in Sangheilios." asked Thel.

"We will arrive at Sangheilios in less than 1 hour. What's with the dress robes?" he asked.

"Well… I will be attending an important ceremony later." answered Thel.

* * * * *

"Zen hurry up, we don't want to be late." shouted Nira.

"Ok, ok." he replied. Zen had to hurry up with wearing his 'formal' attire; He wore a simple polo shirt with black pants. After combing his hair, he grabbed the camera at the desk and went downstairs.

"Wow, took you long enough just to wear _that_." said Zide teasingly. Zen just glared him.

"Ignore him." said Z'jo.

"Can we go now please, I want to see him." said a woman wearing formal attire, a red dress.

"See, Jess is getting angry." said Z'jo to Zen.

"Ok, ok. Stahn and V are waiting for us outside." said Zen, and the group went outside.

All the Sangheili, Z'jo, Zide and Nira, chose to wear simple formal dress robes; cameras hung around their neck. Stahn and Viper were standing outside, wearing almost the same attire as Zen, except in different color.

"Everyone ready?" asked Viper. All of them nodded.

"Ok, lets go." said Viper and they all headed down the street.

"When's father going to arrive?" asked Z'jo.

"He called earlier saying he'll arrive on time and not be late." answered Zen.

Just as Zen said this, a Sangheili taxi car arrived and parked at the side of their street. It opened and a Sangheili wearing dress robes stepped out. The Sangheili paid the driver and closed the door.

"Hope I'm not too late." said Thel to the group.

"Right on time." said Zen smirking.

The group continued towards the intersection and crossed it; in front of them stood the Sangheilios Military Academy or SMA. At the entrance arch was banner saying, 'Commencement Exercises'.

* * * * *

N'kev sat on a bench facing a fountain. He sat there as he tried to pass the anxiety of him graduating. He was going to graduate from SMA. He still couldn't believe he was here. It was actually Thel who helped him join the academy. His mind wavered to the memories of his childhood at Bonn Ridge. It was quite a shocker when he found out he had the powers of a Creator. His father, Zen, thought him how to use it properly. He also made him promise not to show it to other people.

In which he was still living up to now. So far during his time in the academy, nobody knew about his powers let alone he _used_ it when he was at the academy. During his time here in the academy he could sum it up in one word, _pain_. It was hard being at the academy. They had to do training every day; till dawn to dusk. Training was everything. And training reflects to performance.

They were being _graded_ by their performance in their training. If you did well you get, in a manner of speaking, an A+. If you did otherwise, well…; but fortunately for N'kev he excelled in almost every task. It must've been because he master was Thel Vadam; the Arbiter. It was something that was kept secret in the academy. Nobody knew this secret and was only told that Thel was V'rey and was a retired Sangheili soldier.

As he pondered in his thoughts he didn't noticed that someone sat next to him. He looked at the guy and saw it was Olut 'Fulgal wearing dress robes. He was N'kev best friend in the entire academy. One could say that he 'if you see Olut, you're bound to find N'kev along with him.' The two were inseparable. They treated each other like they were brothers. They were so close that rumors started circulating that they were gay and had the _hots_ for each other. Of course, the rumor was flat out wrong.

"Hey." greeted Olut

"Hi." replied N'kev.

"Excited?" asked Olut.

"Heck yeah." answered N'kev.

"Do you know what rank you would be?" asked Olut.

In the academy, during graduation, students are given diplomas that bear their grades and their future rank if they were to join the army. If their 'grades' were good they'll get a high rank.

This was the 'graduating system' they used _after_ Sanghelios defected from the Covenant. Since back then almost everyone had to _work hard_ in order to move up ranks. They found it quite tiresome; since you already did that on the training academy so they find it that they needed to update the system, resulting to the said ranking system.

"I don't know. I might end up being a Minor Domo." said N'kev humbly.

"No way!" exclaimed Olut. "With your skills, I wouldn't be surprised if you end up being a Spec Ops soldier." N'kev shook his head.

"What about you?" asked N'kev.

"Maybe a Major I don't know." answered Olut. This time N'kev was surprised at how _low_ he aimed.

"That's not possible. Your much better than I am, you should be Spec Ops." said N'kev. Olut looked at him somewhat annoyed. The 2 stared at each other seriously for a few seconds before blurting out,

"We both could be in Spec Ops!" They realized at their synced answers and laughed.

"I knew I'd find you two here." said a voice behind them. The 2 looked up and saw that it was a female Sangheili wearing dress robes. It was Xue 'Quaram.

"C'mon you two quit fooling around, we need to get to the graduation grounds right now." she said looking irritated at the two.

Xue was practically the one who _handles_ the playfulness of the 2 Sangheili in front of her. She's the person to go if you fail to find Olut and N'kev since she always seems to find them so easily rather than the others. She made up the 3rd member of the friendship circle between Olut and N'kev. She's the same with N'kev and Olut, smart and knows how to fight.

"Ok." responded the 2. The trio made their way towards the area where the graduation will commence.

* * * * *

In front of Zen was the Graduation Grounds. There were rows of chair that faced a stage which was decorated accordingly. There stood a couple of councilors, the Kaidon of the Azen state and the head of the academy, Fenn 'Quism, who held a proud expression. Near the head was a pile of diplomas. When it was time everyone seated themselves and he began,

"As I stand here before you once again; I am proud to say that I have done my best to make your children _the_ best. It was a long road to perfection but one cannot be perfect but one can _strive_ to be perfect. When your children first arrive here, they were not at the most perfect condition to become soldiers, but now the time has come for them show themselves to you. I give you, your sons and daughters who arrived here worthless," he chuckled to himself along with the audience, "But came out to be the finest."

He turned and the very noble looking girls and boys, dressed in their sheen, white dress robes, stepped out of the building finally, and lined up together in front of the Councilors, Kaidon, and audience.

Unlike most graduation ceremonies, people here remained quiet and calm. But to Zen he couldn't help but feel proud as his son was amongst the graduates. Nira spotted his son and couldn't help but notice that he was very handsome in his robes. She had not seen his son for years when he went to the academy. He had grown quite a lot and looked mature.

* * * * *

As his fellow graduates said their oaths, N'kev couldn't help but feel quite proud in his achievements. He was finally graduating and going to be able to achieve his dream, to be able to help people and protect the ones he loved. This dream was going to be answered the moment he opens he applies for the army.

As they said the finally words of the oath, the head of the academy picked up the diplomas and started handing them out to the proper students. N'kev couldn't help but feel excited as he held his diploma in his hand; he looked to his left and saw Olut who held the expression like he was going to cry. N'kev himself felt like he was going to cry but held it in.

"As now I have given you your diplomas, I advise you to open them once you are in the comfort of your family in your house. With that all said and done, you may now return to your loved ones." said Fenn.

As the last word was said, the audience immediately stood and applauded. The young men and women then stepped off the stages, and proceeded to quickly root out their parents. The mass of moving bodies was confusing at first, but eventually everyone found each other.

N'kev finally found his family and greeted them,

"Hey there big Guy." said Zen, hugging his son.

"Wow N'kev, I see you followed my advice on what to wear." said Zide smirking. Zen just glared him.

"Ignore him." said Z'jo, playfully shoving his brother.

"We're gonna celebrate tonight." said Jess.

"Let me commemorate this moment by taking a snapshot." said Viper. He immediately set up a tripod onto the ground and placed his camera on it.

"Places everyone!" he shouted to them as he timed the timer on it. Everyone started rushing in to their desired poses for the picture. 3…2…1… the camera flashed its flash and everyone relaxed.

Everyone went to normal conversation and Zen was lucky enough to get N'kev.

"Son I want to ask you something." he asked in a serious tone.

"What is it, father?" N'kev asked.

"Have you kept your promise?" asked Zen narrowing his eyes on N'kev. N'kev thought for a moment until he realized what his father meant.

"Yes, I have. Nobody knows about _what _I am and _who _my grandfather is." answered N'kev. Zen smiled.

"That's my boy." he said to him as he hugged his son.

"I am very proud of you N'kev." said Thel as he approached them.

"Thank you." replied N'kev and hugged his grandfather whom hugged in return.

The day was quite an interesting day for the family. They all had agreed to eat lunch at a nearby restaurant, which was going to be crowded in a few minutes if they didn't hurry up. As they headed for it, N'kev placed his diploma in a bag in which he created discreetly. He planned on reading it later when he arrives at their house.

* * *

**Author's Notes: Pronunciation guide:**

**Olut 'Fulgal~ Pronounced the way it is written.**

**Xue 'Quaram~ (Xue) Zoo-(Quaram) Kwaram.**

**The graduation system I used:**

**Guys since I don't know _exactly_ how the Sangheilis 'graduate' in a training academy, I just used my own idea on the topic; for me its works well.**

**

* * *

If you like what you read and want more, please favorite the story and the author,  
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	3. Chapter Ranks

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

**Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.**

**NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.**

* * *

Chapter 3 Ranks

Zen and company went crossed the street and headed the restaurant named, 'Intergalactic Cuisine'. This restaurant is one of the few restaurants that serve Sangheili _and_ Human cuisine. Through the windows, they could see Sangheili families, couples, and singles dining, chatting and enjoying themselves. The inside had the relaxing, cool colored lights, but those were off of course, still plenty of sunlight to burn. They all climbed out and walked up some steps and through the door.

The restaurant was sort of diner styled. There was a rounded bar in the immediate corner of the room they entered, where about ten Sangheili or humans could be seated, eating meals. On the back wall of the room booths were lined up, and the tables near the windows had the gravity stools. Between the dining bar and the booths, was the door to, no doubt, the kitchen.

The floors were tiled dark green, and the wooden tables had dark varnish as well. The ceiling had the same, paneled wood hung over their heads. It was relatively cool inside due to the air conditioning. The group went in and the usher welcomed them.

"How many are you?" the Sangheili asked. Zen turned around and did a headcount then answered,

"9 people." the usher nodded and replied,

"Follow me please." then he went off. The restaurant was nearly a full house; almost all the families that attended the graduation proceeding seemed to have considered eating here. The usher led them a booth at the side that had a window showing the streets of Kebol City.

N'kev placed his bag at the side and noticed someone was looking at him a couple of tables away. He examined and he immediately noticed that it was Olut, along with his family. He smiled at him as Olut waved hello. N'kev looked back to his family when the waitress, a human, came over, smiling pleasantly as she set down menus for them. She said,

"Wow small world." she said as she noticed the mixed family.

"Yeah." replied Viper.

"Anyways, what are your drinks?" she asked.

"I'll just have soda." said Jess as she looked over the menu.

"Same here." replied Z'jo, Zide, and N'kev.

"I'll drink Kebol Whiskey." said Thel.

"Is that _alcoholic_?" asked Zen.

"No. I think you can handle It." replied Thel.

"Then I'll take it as well." said Zen.

"Give it to us as well." added Stahn and Viper.

"I'll just have water." replied Nira. The waitress nodded and went to retrieve them while they continued to select their meals.

"When they said they had human cuisine, they really meant it." said Zen.

"They even have fried chicken! I'm taking that." said Jess amazed.

"Ditto to that." said Stahn.

"Hmm… I think I'll have the 'Boneless Milkfish'." said Viper.

"I'll take the Galvin Ribs." said Nira.

"Wow, that looks tasty, I'll take it as well." said Zide.

"Anything looks tasty to _you_." said Z'jo to Zide. Zide glared at him annoyed.

"I'll have the Mazel Steak." said Zen.

"I'll have it as well." replied N'kev. Thel chuckled.

"Like Father, like Son." said Thel. "I'm going to get it as well." he added.

Everyone continued with normal conversation and N'kev excused himself to go to the bathroom. He stood up and went down the hall. After dodging busy waiters, Sangheili and Human alike, he managed to find the corner of the restaurant and the Restrooms. He pushed the door opened and was surprised to see Olut standing in front of the mirror.

"Was that your family back there?" he asked.

"Yup." answered N'kev as he went into one of the cubicles and 'did his business'.

"I didn't know you had a big family." said Olut.

"No, were actually just a 4 household, most of the ones you see there are friends and relatives." said N'kev as he came out of the cubicle.

"Who came with you?" N'kev asked.

"My parents." replied Olut. N'kev nodded. He washed his hands; afterwards he took a napkin wiped it.

"Talk to you later ok." said N'kev as he left the restroom.

N'kev went back to their table and saw that Z'jo and Zide were having an argument.

"I'm telling you he'll be a Minor." said Z'jo. Zide shook his head.

"No he isn't, I saw him when he was being trained by V'rey and he was _good_. He'll be a Major." replied Zide. Zen whom was listening on their conversation just rolled his eyes.

N'kev sat down on the chair and looked up at the TV monitor that was bolted to the ceiling. A Sangheili reporter was giving a report about the recent skirmish mission against the Loyalist.

"You know, you'd think after 8 years they'd give up." said Viper.

"Yeah, talk about pure determination." replied Stahn.

"So, how is it in the army now?" asked Zen to Thel.

"Same old, same old; we regularly get skirmish missions to attack the loyalist." replied Thel.

"When do you think they'll ever give up?" asked Nira.

"I don't know. But I have a feeling its not going to be soon." replied Thel darkly. N'kev knew that whenever his grandfather gave hunches they were mostly correct. It was a little something he got from the Master Chief.

After a few moments of conversation, the food had arrived and the family began eating. Everyone enjoyed their time at the restaurant. After eating they paid the check and left the restaurant.

Their house was not actually that far away, it was just walking distance. The Sangheili Military Academy was just actually near the boundary of the city entering towards a high end suburb. All the houses were pristine, nice designs and quite expensive. Zen and his family manage to afford one of the houses here and made it there somewhat vacation home on Sangheilios.

They turned up onto one of the houses that was 2 stories and had a garage. It was quite simple yet elegant in a way. It was beautiful from above, spectacular right up close. It was square shaped, with a mansard roof. One corner of the house was a patio with two arches on either corner, and the entrance was on the left wall within the arches. It was, naturally, a tall house due to the fact that it was designed for Sangheilis. The ceilings looked to be ten feet above. At the garage was Zen's Motorcycle nicknamed 'Watcher'. Zen took out his house card and swiped it on the card reader. It glowed green and unlocked the door.

He flipped the light switch and the house illuminated. It was a decent house with furnishings. They headed into the living room which consisted of sofas and recliners along with a hearth.

"Hey N'kev, I think you should open your diploma now." said Jess.

"Ok." said N'kev nervously. He wasn't quite prepared to see what rank he may have He didn't want to let his parents down or even Thel, his master. But nevertheless he shoved the thoughts aside and sat on one of the sofas of the living room and took out the diploma. Everyone was on edge as N'kev took out his diploma and slowly opened it.

It contained mostly the insignia of the SMA but more importantly it contained his grades and equivalence of its rank if he were to join the army. He read the message aloud and came to the last paragraph that will declare his rank.

_"We have observed and graded the said student. We have taken into account of all the things he did and had come to the decision. The said student, if he were to join the army, will receive the rank of_:" he closed his eyes took a deep breath and read them, "_rank of: _Special Operations Soldier."

N'kev's mandibles were agape as he read his rank; Spec Ops. So Olut was right with his prediction. Everyone stared at N'kev as he read his rank. Zide immediately stood up and approached N'kev.

"Can I see?" said Zide. He grabbed the diploma and read it again. After reading it he placed it down the table, with a very surprised expression.

"YOU REALLY ARE SPEC OPS!" he shouted and gave a bear hug to N'kev. At this point everyone managed to regain their composure and started to congratulate N'kev for his accomplishment. N'kev couldn't help but blush as he was given hug after hug from his relatives.

"You must be really good to get Spec Ops!" said Z'jo.

"Of course, I'm his master." said Thel to Z'jo. Zide and Z'jo just scowled at him.

"Wow kid, I knew you could be good but DANG!" said Stahn.

"That's my brother" said Jess as she gave him a hug. After the excitement died down, Zen, Nira, Zide, Z'jo, Stahn and Viperwatcher began discussing which location they should visit first in the list they had that were given to them by the Sangheili tourism department. Aside from visiting N'kev's graduation, they also came since the Tourism department hired them to do coverage on their natural tourists spot.

As the rest of them started planning on where and what they should do tomorrow, Nira managed to talk to N'kev.

"I'm very, _very _proud of you son." she said to him as she gave a kiss to his mandibles.

"Thanks mom." replied N'kev as he hugged her. Nira turned around and joined the rest of them whom were planning on where they should go for tomorrow.

"Guys I'm going to get some rest now." said N'kev to them. Zen broke away from the group and answered him,

"You go do that." Zen smiled. N'kev turned around and headed upstairs towards his room. He opened the door and headed for his wardrobe. He took out some clothes and laid them on his bed. He locked the door and undid his dress robes.

He faced the mirror on the wardrobe and saw himself. He couldn't believe his body could pass for Spec Ops. Mostly Spec Ops soldiers have a well _ripped_ body but he wasn't. Well, he had muscles and a few abs but that's just about it.

He sighed as he grabbed his clothing and clothed up. He placed the dress robes on the used clothing basket and unlocked the door. Remembering about Olut's prediction he decided to contact him using his PC.

He turned it on and it booted quite fast. He signed in on his Instant Messaging software and saw that Xue and Olut were online. He invited them to a 3 way call and they accepted.

N'kev's headphone gave a _ringing sound_ then the sound of someone _picking up a phone_ as the users accepted.

"Hey guys!" said N'kev.

_"How are you doing N'kev?" _said Xue.

_"Sup?" _asked Olut.

"Did you guys open your diplomas yet?" N'kev asked.

_"Yeah and…"_ said Olut.

_"What's your rank?" _asked Xue.

"You first." said N'kev.

_"No you first._" said Olut.

_"Since no one wants to go first I say we say them all at the time. Ok with that?" _said Xue.

"Ok." replied Olut and N'kev.

"3…2…1…" began N'kev.

Then all of them answered in unison "Spec Ops!" All of them felt silent as they realized that all of them received the ranking of Spec Ops.

"Wow!" said N'kev.

_"Wow indeed." _replied Olut.

_"Hey guys are you going to sign up for tomorrow?" _asked Xue. N'kev thought for a bit; signing up for the army wasn't all that hard but you know what they say, 'the earlier the better.'

"Yeah, I'll have my grandfather drive me there." said N'kev.

_"Oh… N'kev can you pick me up; I'm signing up as well._" said Olut.

_"Me too; please._" pleaded Xue.

"Ok." replied N'kev.

* * *

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Please favorite the story and  
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	4. Chapter Signing Up

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 4 Signing Up

N'kev woke up on 6 o clock in the morning after he had the dream of the 2 people up on the mountains and one of them falling. He never understood why he had those to begin with but he decided to shove them away for now. He was happy as well that he woke up early since he needed to prepare for the things he'll need in order to sign up for the army.

He went into his wardrobe and quickly chose the most decent looking and at the same time the most casual looking he has. He came out with a green t-shirt and some jeans. He also took some underwear and socks and placed them on his bed.

He grabbed his towel and headed to the hallway. He could smell someone cooking breakfast down at the kitchen and he could hear the TV going on about the news. He went into the bathroom, undressed and stepped into the shower. He let the warm water ease up his muscles and relax his cold body.

After washing up he went to his room and got dressed. He got his bag, and placed some personal belongings and the diploma. He'll need the diploma later for signing up. As he was finished he went downstairs to get some breakfast. He could smell his mother placing breakfast, which consisted of Eggs and Bacon, being laid on top of the table.

"Good Morning." he said to her mother as he went into the dining room.

"Good Morning why, are you up and early today?" asked Nira.

"I have to go to the Sangheili Military Entrance Processing Station (SMEPS) to enlist for the army." he said as he began eating his breakfast.

"May I ask how you'll get there?" ask Nira.

The SMEPS is actually quite far from their house. Its somewhere located near the center of the city.

"I'll ask grandfather to drive me there." said N'kev. Then Thel went into the dining room wearing civvies.

"Um… Grandfather." began N'kev. Thel looked at him, "Yes?"

"Can you drive me to the SMEPS since Zen is going to have to go to work?" asked N'kev. Thel didn't even think twice.

"Sure I can drop you off there, since it's quite near the Council Hall. I actually have to go their today to discuss matters about the Loyalists; again." answered Thel.

"Yes… Grandfather Can I ask you to drive to 2 of my friends' house since they want to apply as well." continued N'kev. Thel thought for a moment and smiled.

"Sure." answered Thel.

"Um… Just don't wear your arbiter armor." said N'kev.

"Why?" Thel asked curiously.

"It's because they don't know who you are. They justknow _you_ as my grandfather V'rey." answered N'kev.

"Ok, then get ready we'll be leaving in a few moments." said Thel. N'kev then finished eating his breakfast.

"Nira, is Jess coming with you guys for you _coverage_ trip?" asked Thel.

"No she isn't. She said she'll just stay at home since she was tired all day. She said she'll be the one to cook us dinner." answered Nira.

* * * * *

A few minutes later Zen, Thel (who was now wearing his battlesuit) and N'kev are inside the garage, the gate closed to ensure privacy. Zen was creating them a small Sangheili sized 4-seater car. He created them one in a blink of an eye. He handed the keys to Thel who accepted it gratefully. N'kev hopped into Shotgun seat whilst Thel went to the back and placed his Arbiter armor at the trunk then he went into the driver's seat.

Zen went into the driver's window and said,

"N'kev if you get back here when we are not here yet, you know where to find the spare key right?" asked Zen. N'kev nodded.

"I know father." Zen smiled.

"I wish I could bring you myself to SMEPS, but you know." said Zen.

"I understand father." replied N'kev. Then Thel started the car's engine. Zen opened the garage door and the car went down the driveway. The Watcher was placed aside by Zen and the car started backing up onto the street. A few moments later they headed down the streets of Kebol City. A few moments driving and directing by N'kev, they arrived at a suburb not far away from theirs. They parked in front of one of the houses.

It was a simple yet elegant looking house. N'kev instructed Thel to honk the horn and he did so. As he did it 2 Sangheili exited the house, it was Olut 'Fulgal and Xue 'Quaram.

"Thank you picking for us up, sir." said the 2 in unison as they hopped into the back of the car.

"My pleasure kids." answered V'rey. Then they drove off to the location of SMEPS. Traffic was light so they managed to get a good head start. Kebol City is located in the state of Azen which is the capital of Sanghelios so it's relatively heavy with traffic.

But it was a good thing they left early as they encountered little traffic. They could see the city slowly come to life. N'kev could see the shop owners at the side opening their stores and rotating the sign from 'closed' to 'open'. There were also a couple of people walking at the sidewalk, mostly wearing suits, going to the offices maybe.

They could also see the street cleaning vehicles wash the road to make it clean once again. The 3 suns of Sangheilios slowly make their way up the sky to brighten the day; their rays striking the buildings. Since Kebol was a very important city it also sported the typical skyscrapers. Skyscrapers in Sangheilios is quite the same with Earth designed ones but theirs had a more _sleek_ design.

The windows of the buildings shimmered as the rays of the sun hit them. N'kev looked at his watch and saw that it was 7:00AM. Olut at the back of the car had one intriguing thought that he had suppressed but couldn't hold it any longer.

"Umm… Sir." he asked V'rey.

"Have I seen you somewhere before? And you voice sounds familiar as well. Who are you exactly?" he asked curiously. V'rey just responded,

"I'm sorry; you must've mistaken me with someone _else_. I get that a lot." he gave a discreet wink at N'kev.

Sure they've seen V'rey a lot. Of course he is the one and only Arbiter. He became infamous for being a heretic but became famous once he made the alliance with the humans. But of course when he spends time with his friends and family he goes by the alias, V'rey 'Evanam. This information was kept hidden to the public. Even N'kev's best friends don't know this.

N'kev gave his friend a quick look that says, I-know-something-you-guys-don't, but quickly erased it and gave them a poker face. This Xue noticed and took note. She wanted to ask him if he knew something, but considered asking it later.

"Oh… Sorry I thought you sounded like… Never mind." said Olut promptly embarrassed by asking the question.

"Its ok." said V'rey.

A few moments later they arrived at the SMEPS. It was a large building, it sported a large flagpole in front of the main entrance, and the Sangheili flag was waving lazily in the wind. The walls were made of cement and were colored brown. There was awning that covered the main entrance. There were some trees and flowers surrounding the building.

V'rey parked the car near the front entrance and unlocked the door. Before they left V'rey turned to N'kev and asked,

"Do you want me to pick you up later? You just call me ok." said V'rey.

"I will." said N'kev.

He grabbed his bag and hopped out of the car. Olut and Xue followed him. A few moments later N'kev saw the car went around the corner of the street and disappear. He knew his grandfather can easily pick him up due to the fact that the Council Hall is just _next_ to the SMEPS. He chuckled to himself when the image of his grandfather in Arbiter armor picking him up, like a parent picks up a child from school.

"Your grandfather is your Master as well right?" asked Xue. N'kev nodded, "Yup."

"He must be very good then, considering his age." said Olut somewhat amazed.

"Of course…" he trailed off. If hee was to continue his sentence he would have said, '_Of course, because he's the Arbiter. He has to be.'_

"Wow." said Xue looking around the building.

"I can't believe were here." said Olut.

"Did you bring you diplomas with you?" asked N'kev.

"Yeah we did." said the 2 in unison showing him the diploma.

"Let's go then." then the trio walked towards the entrance of the Sangheili Military Entrance Processing Station.

* * * * * *

"Wow, I didn't know Sangheilios had this much tourist attractions." said Zen as he looked over the lists of locations they had to cover for their assignment in Sangheilios.

"Even I don't know some of these ones." said Z'jo as he checked his pen if it had ink.

"We go a lot to cover, let's head to the nearest one." said Viper. Stahn looked at the map and said,

"The nearest one from our location is the, 'National Museum of History'.

"Let's get going then." said Nira.

A few minutes later they boarded their vehicle which headed for the so called National Museum of History. When they had arrived at the location Zen was quite amazed at the similarity it had on human museums back on Earth. But still it retained some Sangheili designs and such.

They parked the car at the parking lot and stepped out. As they climbed the steps heading towards the entrance, Zen could see different people, Sangheili and Humans, taking pictures. On the walls of the museum were some banners that showed the different exhibits that it had.

After Viper showed their passes, they were given special passes by the Tourism department to allow them to enter for free, they went inside. Zen looked around, his expression filled with awe. At the ceiling was a large circular window that allowed light to pass through main entrance.

At the first floor contained exhibits that showed the history of the Covenant, starting from the Forerunners up to the defection of them of the Covenant then to the present. There was also an exhibit dedicated to a few special war heroes such as the Arbiter and the Master Chief. Then there was also an exhibit showing the different cars of Sangheili's, from past to future.

There was also an exhibit that showed the different type of weapons used on the war. It also sported a few human weapons that mostly got curious looks by Sangheili tourists. The museum was pretty much busy as different groups of people, mostly tour groups, move about. There were also some Sangheili groups that Zen recognized as Field Trip groups. But throughout the madness that was inside the museum people seem to get to their desired exhibits with little to no problem. Everything was quite orderly.

"So where do we start?" asked Stahn looking around nervously. The place was so big it would make anyone nervous.

"I honestly don't know." said Viper. He thought for a moment then he snapped his hand.

"I got it. I know how we'll choose which exhibit to go through first." everyone looked curiously.

"Ok, how?" asked Z'jo.

"By doing this." said Viper as he grabbed a map of the museum and laid it onto a table at the side. There Zen saw that the museum was _big._ He also noted locations of the exhibit such as The Forerunners Exhibit, hoping that they'll have explanations on what Creators are.

Viper placed his index finger on one exhibit; he cocked his head to the group and said, "Ready?" Everyone nodded curious at what he was going to do. He turned his head back to the map close his eyes and began,

"Enie, meanie, miney, mo, touch, a, tiger, on, his, toe, if, he ,hollars, let, him, go, enie, meanie, miney, mo" he stopped his finger and looked at where it landed when he said 'mo.'

* * *

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	5. Chapter Suspicion

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

**Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.**

**NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.**

* * *

Chapter 5 Suspicion

N'kev, Olut and Xue walked through the doors of the SMEPS. The main entrance was quite nice. They stood in a large circular room that had the emblem of the Sangheili on the middle of the floor. There were some benches here and there and a couple of potted plants. There were some doors to the side that were metallic and had a card key scanner at the side panel.

At the side of them was a bulletin board showing the military chain of command. Obviously the one at the top was the _High Council_ members below them was the _Ossoona_ and the _Arbiter._ But beside the 2 titles were a note saying **Prominent/Temporary**. It made sense due to the fact the Arbiter and Ossoona are _expected_ to die in there line of work.

Below the 2 were the _Fleet Commanders_; this held the titles of_ Fleet Master, Supreme Commander_ and _Imperial Admiral._ Next to the Fleet Commanders were _Zealot Officers; _this contained the titles of _Field Master, Ship Master, Fleet Master _and_ Supreme Commander._ Below the Zealot Officers were, to the group's excitement, the _Special Operations_; this held the titles of, _Spec Ops, Spec Ops Officer _and _Spec Ops Commander of the Covenant._ After the Spec Ops category were the Honor guards; below that were the specialists such as the _rangers _and_ Stealth_. And at the very bottom were the regulars; _Minor, Major _and _Ultra._

N'kev took his eye off the board and back again to his surroundings. There were actually the only people at the lobby excluding the employees working the booths. The windows of the booths were somewhat deformed and blurred to avoid showing the employee working there. These booths had different titles stuck to the top. There were 4 booths in total, each bearing: Spec Ops, Minors, Majors, and Ultras. This made sense as that these were the only 4 possible ranks that can be given to you by the academy. In order to achieve higher ranks than the 4 above, you have to participate in battles.

N'kev beckoned for his friends and the 3 walked up to the booth bearing Spec Ops at the top. They lined up and N'kev was upfront. He rang the bell at the side, and then the glass in front of them crystallized making the Sangheili behind visible.

"Hello, how may I help you today?" asked the Sangheili. N'kev took out his diploma and showed it to the guy.

"I would like to sign up for my post." said N'kev. The Sangheili narrowed his eyes on the diploma. He pressed a button on the side of his desk and a small portion of the window opened up to allow the diploma to be passed.

"Hand them over please." said the Sangheili. N'kev complied. As he handed them over the employee asked him, "Are you a group?" he asked directing his head to Olut and Xue.

"Yes." nodded N'kev.

"Hand theirs as well." said the Sangheili. Olut and Xue took out their diplomas and handed them to N'kev who gave it to the Sangheili.

"Thank you." said the Sangheili.

The window they used to pass the documents closed as he laid the diplomas to his side and opened it. He looked at it and began typing on his keyboard. The monitor beside him flashed but N'kev couldn't see the image since it was heavily tinted. He kept typing on his keyboard and giving occasional glances to N'kev and his friends.

N'kev felt, never before in his life, quite nervous as the Sangheili clicked his mandibles when he saw something in the monitor. But he regained his composure and placed a poker face, prepared to whatever the Sangheili has to say to them. With a final press on his keyboard he turned back to N'kev and company.

"Your, identity has been confirmed, and I'm quite intrigued you 3 are the only ones who graduated from your batch that attained the level of Spec Ops." said the Sangheili.

"Really?" asked Olut curiously. Xue just looked surprised by the statement.

"Yes, you're the only 3. Anyways please head over to the metallic door you see on the right." as he said this, the door opened on cue. "To begin your physical examination tests; we will give your diplomas back after your examinations." said the Sangheili.

"Physical Examination Tests?" asked N'kev. The Sangheili nodded,

"Yes. P.E.T. is becoming a mandatory for all people who want to join the army. It was implemented to ensure that all soldiers that were to join are in tip-top condition." answered the Sangheili.

"Oh… Ok thank you; c'mon guys." said N'kev as they left the booth and headed to the metallic door.

* * * * *

As the group entered, the Sangheili back at the booth deformed his window again to ensure privacy. He turned on his seat and said to his coworker,

"Hey, Kev, check this out." Kev turned on his seat and approached him.

"What is it, Cloid?" asked Kev.

"This." said Cloid directing to the monitor in front of him. It displayed full information about a particular Sangheili.

"Well, there seems to be nothing wrong with his profile." said Kev. Cloid snorted,

"That's the problem. I did a background check on this guy, and came up with nothing about his childhood; but his profile is legitimate enough to pass identity checking." said Cloid,

"What do you mean 'nothing about his childhood'?" Kev asked curiously.

"I mean, there's nothing. _Nothing_ about his childhood; the only thing that the database has in storage is from the guy's history starting when he was about 5 years old."

"That's…Odd." said Kev.

"Yeah… What do you think we should do?" asked Cloid.

"Does he seem like a _faker_ to you?" asked Kev seriously.

"No, he seems…truthful enough." said Cloid. Kev just sighed,

"Well we just have to put him under surveillance, if by any chance he slips up on his identity and show signs of his _real _identity, we'll arrest him there for 'Identity Fraud'. While we do that, try digging up some more about this Guy." said Kev.

"Sure thing." said Cloid as he turned back to his computer.

"Who_ are_ you?" he asked as he looked to the picture of the Sangheili staring back at him from the monitor.

* * * * *

Zen aimed his camera and pressed the flash button. It took a few seconds for the camera to process the image, but when it finished he took a look at it. It showed a clean shot of the 'Demon Exhibit' which he was currently in. Their team had separated to cover more of the Museum. He went to the 'Demon Exhibit' first to check out how the Sangheilis portrayed the Master Chief.

He was surprised to see a wax figure of the Master Chief standing in the middle; wielding 2 SMG's and was crouched. It was a complete replica of the Master Chief; complete with MJOLINR armor. There was a plaque in front of the statue that said:

Spartan 117

Aliases: 'The Demon' 'The Master Chief'.

He chuckled to himself as he saw other Sangheili look up in awe as they scrutinized the wax figure. This may be the only chance they see him up close since the Spartan was back at Earth. The next exhibit was for the Arbiter. It was completely the same with the Master Chief exhibit except it held a wax figure of the Arbiter wielding an energy sword.

As he walked down the halls, the rest of them regrouped along the way.

"Done with your part?" asked Zen to Z'jo.

"Yup got good reviews of the place." said Z'jo as he placed his notepad back on his bag.

"Wow they have so many exhibits." said Stahn as he walked near the group.

"My camera is nearly running out of film." said Nira as she came around the corner.

"My pen _won't_ write anymore." said Zide.

"Well at least we've got one more exhibit to do before were done." said Viperwatcher.

"And that is?" asked the 5.

"The AAS Exhibit." he answered.

"AAS?" asked Zen.

"Alliance and All Stars." answered Zide, who was looking at the brochure of the museum.

"Says, here that the AAS exhibit was built to commemorate the people who fought valiantly in the war, human and Sangheili, resulting to 'All Stars'.

"It also houses the history of the Alliance between Humans and Sangheilis. Humans and Sangheilis actually worked together to get the exhibit built." said Zide.

"That would be interesting." said Z'jo. They rounded on the corner and saw the exhibit entrance. They entered it and saw it was partially filled with people; amidst the room filled people, stood 5 wax figures in the center.

"Um…guys." said Zen as he approached the wax figures.

"What is it?" asked Z'jo looking around.

"Why do we have wax figures of _ourselves _here?" asked Zen.

"_What?_" asked Stahn.

"Look." said Zen directing to the 5 wax figures.

The group looked at the wax figures and sure enough, there it was. One Sangheili was wearing a different sort of armor. It was almost the same with the regular elite armor except it was colored army green. At the left chest area, was written in bold white letters 'UNSC'. The elite's helmet was tucked under his other arm and that had the insignia of the UNSC on it.

The other Sangheili wore the same except his was colored off brown. The other Sangheili was wearing Standard Elite Spec Ops armor. The rest of the 2 wax figures were 2 people wearing, what Zen recognized as, the Creator Armor. One was wearing cobalt blue color whilst the other was wearing a yellow colored one.

"I think I know how we have wax figures here." said Stahn. Everyone looked at him.

"Remember that…" he began storytelling.

*****FLASHBACK*****

**TIME FRAME: A time after the ending of CC: Life and before the events of CC: Consanguinity. **

The phone was ringing in the kitchen. Stahn stood up and said,

"I'll get it." he was currently at Zen's house.

"Thanks." called Zen from the kitchen. He approached it and answered.

Z'jo came out of the corner of the living room and asked,

"Who was it?" he asked.

"It was Miranda Keyes." answered Stahn.

"Miranda Keyes, as in _Miranda Keyes_?" asked Zide as he popped out of the corner.

"What did she want?" asked Nira coming downstairs.

"She asked me if we could send them a picture of the 5 of us, wearing armor but the helmets to the side to show the face; said it was for an exhibit or something like that."

"Oh…" said Zen as he came out of the kitchen.

_A few minutes later_

"Ok the timer's set, places everyone." said Stahn as he configured the camera. He immediately rush to his place, next to Zen and took their poses in front of the camera. They followed Miranda's order to remove the helmet and tuck them under their hands to enable the people to see the faces. The camera flashed and everyone relaxed.

"I'll just send this to her and we're done." said Stahn as he removed the camera from the tripod.

*****END OF FLASHBACK*****

"And that's It." said Stahn, finishing the story. Everyone looked shocked.

"I thought it was just for an exhibit like a meeting or something but I never knew it was for a museum exhibit." continued Stahn.

"Now our faces are known." said Zen.

"Yeah." said Z'jo darkly.

"I never knew I looked that great in my armor." said Zide looking up to his wax figure.

Z'jo sighed and looked up in his wax figure. He had to admit it; he looked cool in his armor. He turned his head just in time to see a group of young female Sangheili women looked at him and back to the wax figure. They blushed as they noticed that he was looking at them.

Then he overhead one of them say to her friend "That's them!" They all looked up to give a glance in Z'jo's group. "He looks more handsome in person." said one of them and another giggled.

"Guys I think, we should get out of here." said Z'jo calmly.

"I think so too." said Zen. They noticed that most of the groups of people were staring at them then to the wax figures then back to them. They slowly walked out of the exhibit trying their best not to run; but before they could get out a Sangheili security guard, he was guarding the exhibit, steps in front of them.

"Sir." said the Sangheili in a police-tone.

"Yes." said answered Zen.

"Can I… Get your autograph?" said the Sangheili turning partially purple in the face. Zen was somehow shocked at the Sangheili but nevertheless complied. He ripped a piece of paper from Nira's notes and signed it. He handed it to Z'jo, Stahn, Zide then to Nira who did it as well with no question. He handed the paper to the Sangheili who accepted it gratefully.

"Thank you so much sirs and mam." said the security guard as he stepped out of their way.

"Time to go now, we're making a scene." whispered Viper under his breath; the group immediately fast-walked it out of the museum to avoid another _scene_.

* * *

**Author's Notes: The ranking system that I have written at the beginning of the story was gotten from Halopedia.**

* * *

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	6. Chapter Examination

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 6 Examination

N'kev, Olut and Xue approached the metal door that slid opened. Beyond it was a hallway that had a series of doors that were colored white. A Sangheili went out one of the door to their right. He was holding a clipboard to his face. He approached N'kev and company and lowered the clipboard. N'kev immediately recognized him as the Sangheili who was talking to them from behind the booth.

"Hello again." he said smiling. They smiled in return.

"I am Cloid Lanofim, I will be one of your physical examiner's today. Which one of you is N'kev 'Xem?" asked Cloid.

"I Am." said N'kev.

"I will be your physical examiner, follow me." Just then 2 more Sangheili stepped out carrying clipboards. N'kev looked to his friends and said, "See you later guys." they nodded in agreement and N'kev followed Cloid.

The 2 walked down the hall and Cloid turned to a door at the side, he pressed the panel and the door slid opened. It was dark inside with no lights. Cloid turned to him and said,

"After you." he urged. N'kev nodded and went into the dark room; with Cloid right behind him. The door closed and the room was eaten whole by the darkness. N'kev heart rate immediately went up but he stayed calm. He could feel Cloid moving around the room and was wondering how he can move about with no problems.

He heard move around the room then a flick of a switch. He closed is eyes as he tried to shield them by the sudden light. He blinked as eyes started to focus. He could see that he was inside a white tiled room. Like a medical bay. There was a medical table and a computer at the sides. The table looked bulky, it was rectangular and big. N'kev mind told him it wasn't an ordinary table. There he saw Cloid smiling at him.

"Sorry about that." he said. He beckoned N'kev to approach him and he obeyed.

"N'kev I need you to strip you clothes off and lie down on this table." he pointed to the medical table.

"Ok…" said N'kev a little bit nervously. He never stripped his clothes off in front of a person, but now was not the time to be ashamed of his body. But a more concerning thought came to him to how would he explain his Creator Scar.

"You can place your clothes over there." said Cloid looking over a small cabinet near a small changing curtain. N'kev nodded and headed over there.

Cloid started fiddling with the machine in front of him. It began to whirl to life as he pressed the buttons. A few moments later N'kev came out, nude, and lied down on the medical table. Either Cloid didn't notice or didn't bother to ask as he calmly said to him,

"N'kev, try to stay still and relax." as he pressed the buttons; N'kev lay still on the table trying his best to stay still _and_ relax at the same time. He felt the table come to life as it _rumbled_.

A metal circular girder detached itself from the bottom and placed itself on top of N'kev. The _scanner_ moved up and down N'kev's body. He could feel a slight tingling sensation each time it passed its body.

The monitor on Cloid's computer showed a live scan of N'kev's body, showing areas in unison with the scanner. A few moments later of scanning the _scanner_ lowered itself and connect back to the table. N'kev could feel the table turning itself off.

"Don't stand up yet." instructed Cloid as he noticed N'kev was standing up. He approached one of the side panels near the computer and pressed a button. A drawer slid opened and he took a syringe from it.

"Are you afraid of needles?" he asked while checking the syringe.

"No." answered N'kev.

"Good." said Cloid as he approached him. He chuckled to himself as his gazed traveled down N'kev's body. N'kev followed his eyes and noticed it stop for a millisecond at his crotch. He looked at it and noticed his shaft had hardened when he was being scanned earlier. _Damn_, he thought to himself as he turned purple.

"Don't worry. Its normal." said Cloid as he approached him. He walked next to him and aimed the syringe next to his body.

"This might sting a little." he said to N'kev. N'kev nodded and he lodged the syringe to his body. N'kev felt pain but kept it in as he could feel his purple blood get sucked inside by the syringe. He winced slightly as Cloid took it out and checked it.

"Get dressed." he ordered and N'kev complied. Cloid sat next to the computer and accessed it. He placed the blood sample in the desk and closed it. He'll be using that later. A few moments of accessing the results if N'kev's physical examinations came to the screen. N'kev came out of the corner, dressed, and sat on the table.

"Ok." said Cloid turning around from his chair. He was holding some papers that held the results of N'kev's test. He clicked his mandibles as he scanned through them.

"Your head's ok." said Cloid checking one of the papers. He turned to the next one and read it.

"Heart's fine." N'kev nodded

"No broken bones." he continued then he clicked his mandibles. N'kev looked at him curiously.

"Is their something wrong with me?" he asked.

"Nothing really, it says here you suffered from a concussion. But don't worry its fine now." N'kev exhaled. He was glad it was nothing serious, just a simple concussion on the head nothing to worry about.

"Aside from that nothing's wrong with you; and I'm happy to say you're not infertile." said Cloid looking up from his papers and smiling at N'kev. N'kev just smiled weakly back at him, not expecting that comment from him.

"One question, what happen to you that got you that scar?" he asked curiously. N'kev wondered why he didn't immediately recognized as a Creator Scar but he quickly remembered that not _all_ Sangheili know about Creators as they usually left out on history lessons. Cloid noticed N'kev's silence and added,

"It's ok. I won't pry if its private." said Cloid. N'kev nodded and replied,

"Just please don't mention my scar to other people, please." Cloid narrowed his eyes on him but nevertheless agreed,

"I won't."

Cloid stood up and beckoned N'kev to follow him. They went back to the white door they came in and Cloid turned off the lights of the room as they exited. When they entered the hallway they came out the same time, Olut and Xue were coming out of their rooms.

When Olut saw N'kev he smiled at him. Cloid went up to the 2 examiners. They chatted in a low and short conversation. Afterwards the 2 left leaving Cloid behind.

"Let us proceed to the next test, shall we?" said Cloid and he the group followed him to the next room. Along the way N'kev managed to talk to Olut,

"How was it to you? The physical test?" he asked looking at Olut. He clicked his mandibles and replied,

"It was… _Different._" Xue heard the comment and giggled.

* * * * *

"So what's next?" asked Zen as he drank his bottle of water. They were at the park, right in front of the museum. They had to _escape_ from the museum as fast as possible due to the fact that people started recognizing them. It never occurred to them that they could end up in museums but they thought wrong.

It was a good thing they managed to get out fast, but if otherwise, well they could have started another scene. It may have also involved people wanting to interview them since they were war veterans _and_ historic people since they were the ones that initiated the peace treaty.

"Well…" said Viper looking at the list of destinations. Everyone looked at him.

"Were in luck, _this _park is included in the list. This park is called Middle Park." he said looking around. Everyone looked around as well. They didn't quite notice at first but now that they did, the park _did_ look like a tourist spot. There were trees that were tall, a large fountain in one of the squares. Not to mention that a river runs through the park itself.

They could see a lot of people picnicking at the side and enjoying the sun. There were also a couple of tourists group taking a walk along one of the paths, a tour guide in front of them.

"Well what are we waiting for?" asked Nira, loading her camera and adding sounds using her mouth so that it sounded like she was loading a gun. Everyone chuckled when she did this.

"Lock and load." said Zide. Everyone laughed at the comment.

* * * * *

Cloid stopped at one door. He pressed the buttons on the door and it slid opened. It showed the familiar darkness once again.

"After you." urged Cloid. N'kev, Olut and Xue entered the room. After the door closed this time N'kev remembered to place his hands over his eyes to cover them from the sudden flash of light. Through the gaps he saw light pass by and he removed them.

This time they were in some sort of target range. The target range had a rack of guns at the side. It contained Human _and _Sangheili weapons in them. The weapons that were on the rack were placed inside a cage. There were about 6 booths that lined the start of the target range. At the end there were some visible scorches of plasma and bullet holes.

"I presume that they taught you how to handle Human weapons back at the academy?" asked Cloid as he stood behind a control panel near the corner.

"Yes." answered the 3 in unison. It was quite mandatory now to learn how to use human weapons because of the alliance. Heck, they were even taught how to drive warthogs and scorpions.

"First up, pistol." said Cloid as he pressed a button. A caged section of the weapons rack lifted up, he opened the Human Pistols Rack. Each of them grabbed their own pistols and a few clips. After checking that it was loaded they chose their own booths and aimed down the range.

"These bullets of the guns you have have computer chips installed in them that can tells me who shot which bullets, it tells me where it hit the target and it also tells me how accurate you hit. The goal in this test is to get 1. As many kills as much as possible, this is done hitting the red spots on the target and 2. Getting a high accuracy rate; try to achieve the following goals under 1 min. There are no stops in the flow so ensure you reload at the right times. Understand?" said Cloid.

"Yes." said the 3 in unison.

"Ok, beginning in 3…2…1… MARK!" At 'one' he press the button that will start the flood of targets to appear to the shooters; N'kev immediately fired as he saw the red spot on one of the targets He got himself a headshot.

The target range was filled with loud gun fire as shot after shot was fired from their respective guns. In less than 15 seconds, N'kev had to reload as fast as possible to not break his flow.

They continued on like this for almost about an hour. The test was designed to have the examinees use 5 randomly chosen guns from the weapons rack to test their accuracy. After the Human Pistol, the next was a Plasma Rifle; next was an assault rifle; then a Covenant Beam Rifle and lastly the human Battle Rifle.

As N'kev fired off his final bullet Cloid shouted, "STOP!" They immediately complied and laid down the weapons. Olut was wiping of some sweat on his forehead as he returned the battle rifle back to its rack. Xue looked exhausted by standing up for a long time but otherwise fine.

"Come over here please." said Cloid. The group huddled in front of the control panel and waited for the results. Cloid gave an audible 'wow' as he saw the results come up. The 3 looked at each other excitedly.

"Says here, you N'kev have the highest accuracy rate and Xue has the lowest." N'kev just looked surprised as Xue rolled her eyes.

"Don't be disappointed as all of you got lines of 90%. N'kev you have 93.32% accuracy; you Olut have 92.49% and Xue has 91.35%." said Cloid.

The 3 of them looked at him with their mandibles agape. "Really?" asked the 3.

"Yup, numbers don't lie. Anyways you pass the test." said Cloid. The 3 couldn't help but smile to each other.

"Ok, enough about this, time for your second to the last test." said Cloid as beckoned them to follow him. The 3 obediently complied and left the room.

* * *

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	7. Chapter Lunch Bunch

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 7 Lunch Bunch

"Wait." said Cloid as the group stepped into the hallway. He stopped abruptly making Olut collide with N'kev.

"What time is it?" he asked. Olut, who had a watch, looked at it.

"It's 11:30." Cloid sighed.

"I think its time you eat your lunches first before we proceed to the next test. I'll be waiting for you 3 at the lobby in exactly 12:30 ok?" he proposed. The 3 glanced at each other and agreed at the time.

"Best be off now." said Cloid and he began walking down the hallway. N'kev and company went the other way and came back to the door they came into earlier. They went into the lobby and were surprised to see it was buzzing with activity.

"Wow, I guess we got lucky earlier." whispered Xue to N'kev. The lobby looked overwhelmed. There were people who were lining up onto the booths; a couple of employees holding clipboards were looking for there examinee to begin the examination. N'kev took note that only the Spec Ops booth had the least people line up, he saw it only had 3 people in its line. A lot people, N'kev recognized, as a few of their classmates. One of them noticed the 3 and went up to talk to them.

"N'kev!" he cried as he approached him. N'kev turned his head saw that it was, Ranit 'Antac.

"Oh, Ranit." said Olut as he recognized him. Ranit came up to the group and asked excitedly,

"Is it true?" Xue cocked her head,

"Is what true?" she asked.

"That you 3 are the only one that got Spec Ops from our batch?" he asked looking at 3 excitedly. The 3 looked at each other smiled back to Ranit.

"Yeah its true." said N'kev to Ranit; his mandibles became agape as he heard the statement.

"Congratulations. I actually got a rank of Major. Anyways gotta go now; see you later." then Ranit ran off and lined up to the booth of _Majors_.

"I think were becoming popular." said Olut. Xue elbowed him.

"Don't let it go to your head." Olut rubbed the part he was elbowed and then the 3 headed outside.

The SMEPS, being smacked in the middle of the city, was obviously surrounded by commercial offices and buildings. A good thing for them since it guarantees a food-stop at the corner. They walked down the streets heading to the corner. Beside the SMEPS was the Council Hall where, obviously, the Councilors meet up and discuss of what to do for the benefit of the people of Sangheilios.

"Let's eat over there." said Olut pointing to one of the food joints in front of the Council Hall.

"Ok." agreed the 2 as they began to cross the street to get over to the other side.

* * * * *

A Sangheili wearing the Arbiter armor, Thel 'Vadam, was walking down the halls of the Council Halls. He was deep in thought as he strode down the hallway. Beside him Spec Ops Commander, Rtas 'Vadum, was partially fuming as he contemplated on how he was supposed to handle the news that given to him by the Councilors during the meeting.

It would seem that the Loyalist had _managed_ to bypass their tight security and had smuggled themselves inside Sangheilios right under their noses. Rtas was clearly mortified by the news since his department, Spec Ops, was in charge of Homeland Security. He felt ashamed and at the same time he felt he wanted to finish off those Loyalist who managed to slip pass him. They received this Intel only when the Loyalist themselves sent a letter to one of the Councilors saying they were in the planet.

But right now he had _other_ matters to deal with. He received news of New Spec Ops recruit and he had to test their capabilities. He had to ensure that his team knows the ropes or he had to train them some more before he let them out onto the field. Right now he needed a team of individuals that can help him quell the Loyalist. Who knows what diabolical plans they're up to. Being Loyalist it won't be good since they'll resort to _anything_ to achieve their goals.

One of the reasons that he was also fuming was because he was _grounded_. It was his punishment for failing to stop the Loyalist from entering the planet. It said that he was banned from space flight and had to deal with the Loyalist matter on the planet before the ban was lifted from him. Of course the Councilors were nice enough to allow him to travel from state to state with no problem and he was given the chance to choose someone that will help him fix the matter.

Of course without a doubt he chose his friend, Thel. And that's how they ended up together walking down the hallway heading for the cafeteria to eat their lunches. They headed towards the line for the cafeteria, other Sangheili personnel and grunts practically diving out of the way to avoid their path, since the 2 were obviously in a foul mood.

They got their trays and food and headed for a table. They placed their trays their and Thel stared at it for a few moments before exhaling.

"Tell me why again, of all the people, you chose me to share your sentence with?" he asked staring at Rtas. Rtas smirked at him; it looked like a smirk but it was hard to distinguish since he lost half of his mandibles.

"It's because…" he sighed, "You're my buddy." he said grinning at him. "And besides I want to make you miserable as well." he said playfully to Thel. Thel tried his best not to smile but instead he managed to snort.

"I hate you." he said to Rtas playfully while picking up his eating utensils and smiling at him,

"I hate you too." snickered Rtas. Then the two began to eat their lunches.

* * * * *

The trio was eating a local fast food restaurant and was enjoying their lunch. They ate with relative conversation that mostly focused on the SMEPS tests. They wondered what would the next test could possible be. N'kev drank soda while looking outside. It was midday which would mean that you could see a lot of office workers going out to eat their lunch.

The streets were partially jammed with cars since most people prefer to use public transportation when in cities like Kebol. Kebol actually has a labyrinth of subway systems underground. Of course this was all planned by the city planners ahead of time since Kebol was the capital of Sangheilios in a manner of speaking. Kebol city, in the state of Azen, holds a lot of government buildings such as the Council Hall and the Headquarters of Homeland Security to name a few. It also holds one of the largest double ports that are also being used for military means. It is being used by the military by using some of its hangar bay as a repair docks for the war vehicles; wraiths, ghosts and banshees.

The HQ of Homeland Security is also the place to go to get yourself assigned to the particular fleet, platoon or whatever military installation you may want to go. You can say that they are the dispatcher. That's the place where soldiers go _after_ passing SMEPS to begin their tour of duty.

N'kev train of thought was stopped when Olut excused himself from the table,

"Bathroom break be right back." N'kev nodded and he left, leaving N'kev and Xue alone at their table. For Xue this was the perfect place and time to question N'kev about a few things that had been bothering her throughout the day.

"N'kev, I want to ask you something." she began. N'kev looked away from the window and gazed at her.

"What is it?" he asked. She inhaled and continued,

"Earlier today when we were at the car heading towards SMEPS; you allowed yourself an expression that clearly said 'I-know-something-you-guys-don't' when Olut asked your grandfather who he really is. What was that _something_?" she asked curiously.

_'Damn!'_ thought N'kev as he immediately regretted that he ever did the expression in front of them. He completely forgot that Xue was a very good observant. He had to keep that _something_ a secret so immediately played the 'I don't know what you're talking about.' card up his sleeve.

"I don't know what you're talking about." he said to Xue with a hint of innocence to accompany it. But to his dismay Xue noticed that he paused for a few moments before answering. This meant one thing, he was hiding something.

"N'kev, I've known you for a long time now. I know all about your facial expressions and body language; I can read you like an _open book_. Right now you're clearly saying, 'I'm hiding something'." said Xue.

N'kev was completely shocked by this statement and to his horror he didn't manage to suppress the emotion quick enough that it managed to slip and be shown from his face. He quickly placed a poker face but the damage was done.

"Aha! You really are hiding something; spill It." said Xue in triumph leaning close to N'kev to rubbed it in. N'kev just looked away from her gaze and looked out to the window. He hoped that silence would just dissipate her curiosity. Xue noticed the 'silent treatment' that was given to her and knew she couldn't pry deeper anymore. She sat back to her chair, smug smile in her mandibles as she was proud of her achievement.

"I won't pry anymore N'kev, don't worry." said Xue. This made N'kev looked at her surprised as she normally didn't give up that easily.

"But I have only this to say to you; Olut and I are your friends, you can tell us anything and you can be assured it won't get out." said Xue.

N'kev was now completely torn by the desire to spill the beans as he couldn't hold it in any longer. He felt like he was deceiving his friends and it felt bad. On the other hand he _had _to keep the secret since he promised, and one thing about N'kev is that he always kept his promises.

He just bowed his head as he contemplated to tell or not to tell. But this was easily broken when Olut came back from his bathroom break.

"Sorry guys, there were a lot of people." said Olut as he picked up his tray and threw the contents of it down a trash can since he was finished.

"Its ok." said Xue.

"We should go back now, its 12:15 already." said N'kev standing up from his seat.

The rest of there trip back to SMEPS was quite silent since all of them were full on the stomach. But N'kev was silent for a different reason. He was still debating within himself if he should tell his friends of _who_ he really is and _what _he can do.

They walked into the halls of the SMEPS lobby and of course it was still filled with people. The lunch rush didn't seem to have an affect in this particular building. They looked around and noticed that Cloid wasn't in the room. It was obvious why he wasn't in the room yet, they were early. So they sat down on one of the lobby chairs and waited for him. N'kev sat on a recliner and closed his eyes; still pondering about his problems.

Olut and Xue sat next to each other on the sofa. Olut was quite baffled to why suddenly N'kev became silent. He wasn't always the silent type; one of his uncanny ability is to easily strike up a conversation. This was, for sure, not normal behavior for him. In order for him to find out what was wrong with him he asked Xue,

"What's wrong with him?" he whispered to her.

"Want to know why?" asked Xue as a counter question. Olut looked at her curiously then nodded.

"Well it's because…" began Xue. She summarized what she had said to N'kev back to the diner along the while Olut was also becoming curious as well to what he was hiding from his friends.

* * *

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	8. Chapter Lasers

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 8 Lasers

His camera flashed and he had taken the snapshot. Viper approached him along with the rest of the team.

"Ok team that wraps it up for today." said Viper. They had just finished _covering_ Middle Park. They had to stop temporarily due to the fact they had to eat lunch.

"Thank goodness. I can't feel my hands anymore." said Zide, as he sat down on one of the benches, wiggling his hands.

"Me too." said Z'jo sitting down.

"Let's go home, I want to sit down and rest." said Zen.

"Ditto." said Nira.

"I wonder what Jess could be doing at the house today." asked Viper as they headed for their vehicle at the parking lot.

"Judging from her, she must be cooking." said Zen.

"Really, why?" asked Z'jo.

"Well she loves to cook and she said she'll make us some snacks when we get home from our coverage." said Zen.

"Oh, well I hope she does." said Zide.

"I wonder how N'kev's doing at SMEPS." wondered Nira.

"Don't worry he'll be fine." said Z'jo as he boarded the car.

"Yeah you're right." said Nira.

A few minutes later all of them boarded their vehicle and headed down the road, their destination Zen's house.

* * * * *

N'kev opened his eyes as he heard footsteps walking up to them. He turned around and saw that it was Cloid.

"I hope you had a good lunch?" he asked.

"Yeah we did." said the 3 in unison.

"Well then lets head to the second to the last test then." said Cloid as he beckoned for the group to follow. The 3 of them stood up and followed. N'kev had to put off the debate in his head to focus on the next test ahead of him. They entered the white door again at the side and N'kev quickly noticed that the hallway now was brimming with activity.

Numerous personnel along with examinees were walking about the hallways. Each was heading for their designated testing rooms. They managed to navigate through the movement of the crowd and they stopped at the last door at the right at the end of the hallway. Cloid pressed the panel at the side and the door slid open. As usual there was darkness at the end of the hallway. Cloid ushered them in the room.

Cloid flicked the door switch open and saw that there were 2 doors at the side. On top of one door looked like lights. There were some benches on the room and a speaker at the side. N'kev mind registered the room as a waiting room.

"Ok now that we're here I'm going to explain to you the test ahead." said Cloid as he walked to the center of the room.

"The next test will test your endurance and flexibility. The next test will be rigorous and I warn you, the test will make your body do things you thought you couldn't." explained Cloid.

"Now that's said, who wants to go 1st?" asked Cloid. The N'kev's surprise Xue raised her hand immediately.

"Ok then you two wait here, when the light at the top of that door glows green, you two decide who goes next." said Cloid. N'kev and Olut nodded.

"Xue please stand in front of the door and walk through it when the door opens." ordered Cloid.

He walked to the other door and opened it; a few moments later the light glowed green and Xue stepped in.

"Good Luck!" yelled Olut as the door closed, the light on top changed from green to red. The 2 were silent for a few minutes. They were thinking hard and tried to mentally prepare themselves for the test ahead. N'kev couldn't hear any sound coming from the door so it was hard to tell what kind of test was being conducted.

A few minutes later the light on top of the door changed from red to green and it slid opened; then Cloid's voice came from the speakers that said,

"Next." the 2 looked at one another then Olut spoke,

"I'll go." N'kev nodded. Olut stood up, breathed in deeply before entering the dark room that was beyond the door. It closed when he cleared it and the light on top changed from red to green.

N'kev waited in silence as his anxiety reached its maximum. He could feel his hands were sweating and his head; his heartbeat becoming faster as his mind concluded that he was waiting for the inevitable. A few minutes later the light on top of the door changed from red to green and it slid opened; then Cloid's voice came from the speakers that said,

"Next." N'kev stood up. He walked towards the door then through it. It was dark inside when the door closed behind him. Then another door opened to his left side. The sudden light blinded him for a moment but nevertheless walked through it. He blinked as his eyes came into focus. He was now in a steel corridor with a steel floor and roof; at the end of the hallway was a door and a panel to the side.

"N'kev the goal of this test is to press that button at the panel at the other side of the hallway." said Cloid's voice that came from speakers.

"But the catch is you must get there _without_ getting hit by the obstacles. Got it memorized?" asked Cloid. N'kev nodded to himself.

"Great, you can start now." said Cloid's voice.

N'kev gulped as he began walking down the steel hallway. He cautiously looked around his surroundings and was wary of the obstacles. After walking a few steps he heard a faint _crackle _and_ hiss._ He looked up and saw circular disks that were attached to the wall came down from the ceiling. It leveled itself to its leveled and released a red beam. It was a laser sensor.

So this was the obstacle Cloid was talking about. The lasers danced around in front of him forming patterns. At the right moment N'kev walked past it when it formed a rectangle, wide enough for him to pass through. When he passed them, the lasers immediately deactivated and went up the ceiling again. He sighed as he passed the first phase. He kept walking down the hallway when another obstacle came to him. This time the lasers were making more intricate designs, with diagonal and vertical lasers moving about.

Timing it right he managed to pass through it with ease.

'_So far so good.'_ he thought to himself.

He continued walking down the hall; he was now in the middle, when another obstacle came. To his horror this time it wasn't stationary anymore instead it was making intricate maneuvers _and_ was heading straight at him. Thinking fast he quickly ran toward it and jumped through it when it gave a small enough space for him to pass. The lasers crackled when he passed through; it was only inches away from his body.

He caught himself when he landed and did a break roll. The lasers dissipated when he cleared it. He panted as he caught his breath. He stood up and continued walking. This time the lasers appeared around the wall but didn't fire. It was just crackling and sizzling as he passed through. But with lightning quick reflexes he immediately did a back flip that was executed at the right time that cleared him of the lasers when they turned on.

But to his surprise the lasers didn't dissipate when he back flipped to clear it. Instead it activated and it headed straight for him. With a grunt, he quickly did a back flip but bending his body in a manner that cleared him from the lasers. His face was literally inches away from the lasers. He landed spread eagled on the floor but he hugged it hard as the lasers passed above him.

He quickly stood up and breathed heavily as he was amazed at what he just accomplished. He had never imagined he could do that. If he watched that in Slo-mo it would have looked awesome. He picked himself up and started running towards the door, as he was just a few steps away. He pressed the button on the panel and sighed with relief as it said "Unlocking…" in an electronic tone. The test was finished and he passed it. He was about to sit down on the floor when he heard another crackle. He looked down the end of the hallway and saw that the lasers were piling up on each other to make a massive wall of lasers. And the worse thing about it was… It was headed straight for him.

N'kev couldn't see anyway to pass this one; his mind went overdrive as it tried to think of a way on how to bypass the wall of lasers that was headed straight at him. He looked up and saw the solution. A portion of the lasers didn't cover the top, giving enough space for a person to pass their way through. But the problem was it was at the tip of the wall of lasers that reached up to the ceiling.

He couldn't find anymore solution so he chose that one. He looked to his surroundings and saw no possible way to get up high enough to pass through it. He was just surrounded by walls….

_'That's it the walls! I can just do a Wall Run!'_ He thought to himself. He didn't much time though as the lasers were now at the center of the room and was speeding up. Everything went into slow motion. N'kev quickly turned around and ran straight to the door. When he was a kid Zen managed to show him some clips of people doing parkour. He was so amazed by the stunts the people did he tried to copy them. When he grew up he had the uncanny skill of an amateur parkour-ist. One of the things he learned was doing a wall run.

He ran straight to the door and pressed his left hoof at the wall; using his momentum, he managed to place his right hoof a little bit further top. If one would look to the side, you can see him _running_ up the wall. As he placed his right hoof, he quickly kicked off. He arched his body upwards so that his momentum would turn him right side up again. He passed the top of the lasers with grace. He landed on the floor and time seems to go back to normal again.

He breathed in and out as the lasers passed him. All of them stopped as it reached the end of the hallway and dissipated. The door gave a noticeable _click_ as it unlocked. It opened and he quickly ran to it, trying to get away from the laser room. The door closed engulfing him again in darkness. Another door opened to his left side. It slid open to reveal a computer room. There he saw Cloid at the computers, Olut and Xue had their mandibles agape as they saw N'kev enter.

"THAT WAS AMAZING!" cried Olut as he ran towards N'kev and hugged him.

"Why didn't you tell us you could do that!" cried Xue as she ran towards him as well and the 3 did a group hug.

"I....I didn't actually know I could do that myself." said N'kev wiping the sweat of his forehead.

"You know N'kev, you're the 1st person _ever_ to clear that last part." said Cloid as he stood up from the chair.

"That last part is actually not part of the test. It's just there to scare the examinees into thinking that they'll fail because they couldn't get past that part." he continued.

"Yeah the 2 of us actually 'died' because we didn't clear the last part." said Olut.

"Really?" asked N'kev.

"Yup; well anyways lets head to the last test shall we." asked Cloid.

The last test was actually not that hard. It just tested their cooperation with one other. It was mostly focused on teamwork. They had to _kill_ 5 enemies with their only weapons were knives and one pistol. This all 3 of them aced it. At the end of their examination day, they stood at the lobby; Cloid was distributing their diplomas back.

"Here are your diplomas back." said Cloid as he handed them their diplomas.

"And these are your passes that you give to the receptionist at the HQ of Homeland Security, to officially begin your tour of duty." said Cloid. He handed them the passes. N'kev took it and saw that it had his name written on it, with his picture, along with his personal info. Stamped along the ID were bold letters that said 'PASSED'.

"Thank you." said N'kev.

"No thank _you_, for joining the army." said Cloid as he gave N'kev a hand salute. N'kev returned it back.

"I just also want to mention to you, that the orientation for Spec Ops at the HQ will be tomorrow. Don't be late." said Cloid. The 3 nodded.

After their goodbyes the trio walked back outside. They were surprised to see the car they used earlier. Standing there, waiting for them was Thel 'Vadam. He smiled as he saw N'kev carrying his ID Pass.

"Congratulations." he said in greetings as he hugged his grandson.

"Sir if you could have only seen N'kev earlier! He was AWESOME!" cried Olut as he approached Thel.

"Really?" said Thel looking at N'kev who was blushing.

"We'll tell me then while I drive you kids home." said Thel as he got into the car.

* * *

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	9. Chapter Dreams

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 9 Dreams

"Did you really do that?!" asked Jess excitedly to N'kev. They were back at Zen's house now. All of them were seated at the dining table. Thel had just finished telling the story of what N'kev did back at the SMEPS.

"Yeah I did." answered N'kev.

"Wow, watching TV does teach you some things." said Zide.

Everyone was practically amazed at N'kev's achievement back at the laser room.

"So N'kev, are you going to start your tour of duty tomorrow?" asked Z'jo.

"Yes." he replied.

"You're supposed to go HQ of Homeland Security right?" asked Zen.

"Yes." answered Thel.

"Why do you need to go there anyway?" asked Stahn.

"It's because that's the place that assigns you your place in the army, It's also the HQ of Spec Ops nowadays." answered Thel.

"So that means Half-Jaw is also there right?" asked Zen.

"Yup, and because of him I won't be going anywhere for a while." said Thel gloomily.

"Why?" asked Nira.

"It's because…" he then told them the story about Rtas punishment of being banned from space flight because of the Loyalist thing. He also told them of how he got involved in the matter.

"You must be a really good friend then?" asked Stahn smirking.

"You could say that." replied Thel.

"What's your intelligence now on the Loyalist?" asked Z'jo.

"Well, we are still gathering Intel but we're getting good leads." answered Thel.

"Father, if you guys ever need help, there are always 5 war veterans here that can help you with the matter." said Zide. Thel smiled at them.

"I'll keep that in mind."

After their discussion, all of them dispersed. N'kev headed upstairs to his room to get a good night's rest. After washing up and changing clothes, he jumped to his bed and a few seconds in he was sleeping and snoring.

* * * * *

_The fog was thick and the jungle was beautiful. He looked up and saw the majestic mountain. It looked quite beautiful as the suns slowly lighted it with their rays. He continued walking down the path. He wasn't here for to enjoy the fauna or anything along those lines. _

_ He had heard someone scream earlier the day, somewhere at the crack of dawn. He came here to investigate; it sounded like a Sangheili scream. So obviously something must've happen. He moved down the path some more and he was slowly reaching the mountain wall. Then there he saw him._

_ He was lying on the forest floor on his own pool of blood. The body had massive cuts and bruises. He quickly ran to him and recognized it was a kid. About 5 years old. It wasn't odd to find children climbing up mountains since it were quite normal for them. It's actually quite good for the young ones. He knelt down beside him and quickly checked for a pulse._

_ To his surprise there was still one. He slowly and carefully cradled the little guy and ran out of the forest. If the guy was to survive he had to get it to the nearest hospital. He looked down on the Sangheili child and saw that he was knocked out cold but breathing. Whatever had happened to him, he was lucky to survive the ordeal._

_ He ran out of the forest and was now onto the road. He quickly yelled,_

_ "Somebody call the ambulance!!" People looked at him and saw the little boy he had cradled in his arms. A few moments later someone managed to dial the needed number and the ambulance arrived. _

* * * * *

Cloid walked down the street that was headed to his house. He stopped at one house and headed to the door. He carried with him, his jacket and a briefcase to the side. He took out his house card, and slid it down the card reader. The reader glowed green and the door unlocked. He went inside and headed up to his room. He wasn't going to eat dinner since he already did.

He went inside and laid down his briefcase to the side. He went to his computer and turned it on. While it booted he changed his clothing to a much more comfortable one. He took his briefcase and laid it down the computer. He sat on the chair and opened it. Inside were dozen of folders and files but he was practically only interested in one of them. There so called _faker._

So far the _faker_ hasn't slipped up and revealed his true identity yet but there was one thing he failed to notice. SMEPS personnel have access to almost all profiles of people of the State. They use this privilege to access the history of people joining the army. They do this in order to prevent Identity Fraud which seemed to be on the rise.

He took out a piece of paper from his briefcase and examined it. It contained the data of the blood test on the said _faker_.

"Let's see who you really are." he said to himself as he typed the unique code on his computer. He typed the code and the computer pulled up a soft copy of the piece of paper he was holding in his hand.

He then used the computer to compare the data on the soft copy against the stored data on the databases. It took the computer a few minutes since it scanned through a dozen databases. A few minutes in and it blinked,

NO MATCH FOUND

"What the heck?" he asked surprise. He tried it again and the same results. It would seem that the _faker_ has no known data of his blood on any databases they had. But he looked at the alternate searches the computer found. The computer managed to find a match but it was from a different state so he couldn't actually access the file directly from his computer. He had to make a visit to that state the next morning to check the said file.

* * * * *

_The next day…_

* * * * *

N'kev woke up the next day feeling quite confused at the dream he had. He was pondering if his 2 _weird_ dreams were somehow connected. Another odd thing was that the voice of the rescuer was very familiar to him_ very_ familiar to him. He thought he would go crazy if he didn't tell this to anyone since he didn't understand them.

But the counter effect of telling the said dreams to someone, well… that person will think he was crazy. But nonetheless he had to try. It was obvious that Zen was his first choice since he was his father and all that. So that's what he did the first thing in the morning.

He went down the stairs of the house, and approached the living room. There he saw Zen, Thel, Zide, Z'jo and Stahn watching the television. The girls were still at the dining room enjoying their breakfast. It was actually a busy day so they had to eat a heavy breakfast. He walked in the room and called out to his father,

"Um… Father." he asked. Zen looked up,

"Yes?" N'kev gulped.

"Um… Can we talk in private?" Zen stood up and approached N'kev.

"Sure, lead the way." N'kev nodded and he headed upstairs to talk in private in his room.

Zen followed him upstairs wondering what he wanted to talk about. N'kev opened the door and Zen stepped in and sat at his bed. N'kev closed the door behind him.

'_It must be really something personal.' _thought Zen. N'kev sat next to him on the bed. Zen looked at him and it would seem like he was having a hard time figuring out a way to tell him what he wanted to tell him. To help him out Zen said to him,

"It's ok you can tell me anything. What is it?" he asked. N'kev looked at him and inhaled.

"Ok…Um… I wanted to tell you something that I thought you might understand." said N'kev.

"What is it?" asked Zen.

"Well…I've been having these… _Dreams_ lately…And…Um…When I wake up, I' am always sweaty and breathing heavily." said N'kev. Zen nodded, he was having _those_ dreams.

"N'kev…" he said placing his hand on his shoulder.

"Those _dreams_ are normal. You're a... growing kid. But…I think I'm not the best person you should talk to about _this_. You should talk to Thel, he knows…your body more than I do." said Zen, clearly _misunderstanding_ N'kev's dreams. N'kev just stared at him bemused.

"_What?_" asked N'kev. Then he realized that his father misunderstood what he was trying to say.

"No, I'm not talking about wet dreams; and for your information I became 16 last month and I am a legal adult now." said N'kev clearly annoyed at his father for his ignorance at his age.

"Oh, I thought you were talking about _that_. But anyways you should still tell Thel about this." said Zen embarrassed.

"Ok… Do you think this is related to me being a Creator?" he asked.

"It's very likely; was that you were trying to tell me?" asked Zen.

"Yes." he replied.

"If things get weirder some more, just tell us ok?" asked Zen.

"Sure." nodded N'kev.

"C'mon now you don't want to be stuck at traffic heading towards your HQ." said Zen standing up and heading for the door.

"How did you know?" asked N'kev.

"Thel told me. His actually going there as well." answered Zen.

* * * * *

A few minutes later Thel and N'kev were in the car heading for the HQ of Homeland Security. Along the way they picked up Olut and Xue who also wanted a ride. Once they arrive there, that's where they'll get oriented on being Spec Ops and get assigned to their duties.

Olut and Xue sat at the back of the car. They had come to an agreement that they'll confront N'kev on his _secret_ again, this time both of them since Xue alone can't persuade N'kev. They were so curious at what he was hiding and they felt they had the right to know since best friends don't keep secrets from one another.

They turned right on the intersection and they arrived at the street where the HQ was located. It was quite big.

It partially looked like a police department and at the same time a Government building. It had radars on top which was spinning on there own accord. It was just actually a multi story building with a helipad on the rooftop. This building also housed the Spec Ops Command Center.

Since of the incident of the Loyalists managing to slip pass the security and landing on Sangheilios, the Councilors placed the building onto overdrive. They wanted to eradicate the Loyalists who were hiding in the city before they manage to do something drastic. The one who commandeers all of the mayhem is of course Spec Ops Commander, R'tas 'Vadum. Helping along with the problem is Thel 'Vadam.

This was also the reason why Thel was headed to the building. He was called last night that he was to help R'tas orient the new Spec Ops recruits that were going to be coming today since a batch of them were going to arrive.

Thel parked the car at the entrance of the building to let N'kev, Olut and Xue out.

"This is where I drop you off now." said Thel as he unlocked the door. N'kev and his friend hopped off and a few moments later the car turned around the corner headed for the car park. N'kev was sure that he'll see his grandfather again later but at that time he was going to be wearing his Arbiter armor.

"Did you guys bring you ID passes?" asked N'kev. The 2 showed their IDs to him. N'kev was about to beckoned them to follow him when he noticed that Olut and Xue didn't follow him. He turned around and he noticed that they were narrowing their eyes on him.

"This is about my 'secret' again, isn't it?" he asked. The 2 nodded.

"I'm telling you I'm not keeping anything from you guys." said N'kev.

"But you're implying that you're lying to us. Best Friends don't lie to one another." said Xue. N'kev felt the words stung as he heard them. It was true that best friends don't lie to one another. Now he felt like he really was lying to his mandibles. He sighed and said,

"Look. If it makes you happy, I am not lying to you guys. If I were to be lying, let me get hit by Sangheili that falls from the sky." he said to them. The 2 smirked at him not entirely convinced. N'kev was about to start moving again when,

"AH!!!" screamed someone. N'kev looked up just in time as a Sangheili fell from the sky and land on top of him. He landed on top of him with a loud _thud_ and some grunting.

"See, what I tell you, you really are lying to us!" cried Olut.

* * *

**If you like what you read and want more,  
Please favorite the story and  
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	10. Chapter Crush

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 10 Crush

"Get him off me." said N'kev as the large Sangheili was crushing him. Olut and Xue knelt beside him and rolled the big Sangheili on top of him.

"Sir, are you ok?" said Xue as she slapped the cheeks of the Sangheili gently to wake him up.

"Is he alive?" asked Olut as he helped N'kev up.

"…Ugh…" the Sangheili groaned.  
"That answer's your question." said N'kev.

"Thanks for breaking my fall kid." said the Sangheili as he was helped up by Xue. He stretched his body, joints _cracking_ as he did this.

This made N'kev get a good look at the Sangheili. He was a Sangheili wearing Spec Ops armor but even under the armor he could see that the skin was grey; about 8ft tall in height. He had red eyes that faded at the edges into a light red. From his looks N'kev guessed that he was about 24 years old.

"Your Spec Ops aren't you; who are you?" asked Olut looking at the Sangheili. The Sangheili smirked at him,

"Azu 'Zestom. Nice to meet you." he said extending his left arm to a handshake. The 3 looked at his arm and saw a peculiar scar on it. Azu noticed the curious look and acknowledged it,

"This." he said pointing to his scar, "Almost got killed by a brute."

"So you're a war veteran then?" asked Olut.

"Yup; fought alongside the Arbiter and the Demon himself." said Azu. Olut looked at him with awe.

"Speak of the Arbiter himself." said Azu as he looked behind the 3. The 3 turned around and they saw the Arbiter walking down the street, heading for the HQ. N'kev couldn't help but hide a private smile as he saw how his friends reacted to seeing the Arbiter. Thel was wearing his helmet; this concealed his identity to Olut and Xue.

"Azu, what are you doing here?" he asked surprised to see Azu along with N'kev and his friends.

"I fell from the 2nd floor rooftop. They forgot to put 'wet floor' signs again. This kid right here broke my fall." said Azu referring to N'kev. Thel smiled.

"I see… What brings you 3 here at HQ?" he asked even though he already knows why.

"We're here to start our tour of duty." said N'kev smirking at Thel.

"Oh, in that case I may see you 3 later. C'mon Azu we have to get to the meeting." said Thel and he calmly stode away.

"See you guys, later." said Azu as he followed the Arbiter into the building.

"Bye." said N'kev as he waved at them. He turned on his hoof to find that his 2 friends were clearly dazed at their first encounter with the Arbiter. He couldn't help snicker as he looked at their expressions.

"C'mon you two we need to go or else will be late for the orientation." said N'kev. The 2 seemed to snap out of their daze and return to themselves again.

"Ok." said the 2. The trio then entered the Headquarters of Homeland Security.

N'kev went to security check and entered the lobby. It was almost the same as SMEPS except for a few differences. The booths were no longer there but were replaced by a reception table that was being manned by 2 Sangheili. There was a bulletin board at the side that had the heading, 'Most Wanted'. It showed pictures of the most wanted Sangheili criminals in the city.

There were some benches on the side and a few potted plants. There were 2 elevators at the end and hallways at each side. A lot of people were moving about, mostly Sangheili wearing Spec Ops armor. The 3 approached the reception desk.

"How may I help you 3?" asked the female receptionist.

"We're here to start our tour of duty." answered N'kev as he showed her his ID pass. She looked at it and smiled,

"You must be the new recruits, please enter the door over there to get yourself your army IDs." she said pointing to a door at the right that had the title 'recruiting office.'

"Thank you." said N'kev, and the 3 made there way to the door. There was a small note at the side that said, 'One by one only.'

"I'll go first." said N'kev. His friends nodded and sat down on the bench. He opened the door and stepped in.

Inside was a Sangheili behind the desk that motioned for him to sit down the chair beside the desk. There was a monitor on top of the desk that faced the Sangheili. There was also a small printer at the side.

"Can I see your ID pass?" asked the Sangheili as N'kev sat down. He complied and gave him the ID pass. The Sangheili looked at it and began typing at the keyboard.

"Please correct the data if I am wrong." said the Sangheili. N'kev nodded. The Sangheili cleared his throat,

"Name: N'kev 'Xem.

Age: 16

Height: 7ft 5in

Rank applying for: Spec Ops

And Blood Type: B".

"Is this correct?" asked the Sangheili. N'kev nodded.

"Well then N'kev 'Xem," began the Sangheili. He pressed a button at the side and the printer aside began printing.

"Welcome to the Sangheili army." he said and took out the finished product. He handed it to N'kev. It was a small card that showed information about him along with a picture.

"This is your armor claim tag; head on over down to the armory to claim your armor. Your Spec Ops orientation will begin in about 10 minutes." said the Sangheili. N'kev nodded and head towards the door.

He stepped outside and said to his friends, "Your turn." N'kev sat down the bench while Olut went through the door. N'kev saw that there was a line being formed on the benches. He saw at least 5 more Sangheili whom was heading as well to the recruiting office.

After Olut's turn it was Xue's. A few minutes of waiting and then Xue came out. The trio then headed down the hallway. They followed the overhead signs and soon ended up on the armory. The armory itself also included a shooting range quite similar to the SMEPS. They also had many racks that were caged that house many types of weapons, humans and Sangheili ones.

They approached the desk and N'kev handed his ID to the personnel.

"Spec Ops eh?" he asked. N'kev nodded.

"Ok, just stepped over there at the assembler cubicle and step on the red X and spread out your arms." said the Sangheili pointing to the said area. N'kev complied and stepped onto the red X. The cubicle closed and an overhead light turned on.

"Please spread out your arms." said an electronic voice. He complied and then the voice said, "Scanning now." A red beam emerged from the bottom and went over N'kev's body from bottom to top. "Scanning complete; processing… Please open locker number A7 to get your armor and jumpsuit. Thank you." said the voice and the cubicle opened.

N'kev stepped out and went to the lockers. He searched for locker number A7 and opened it. There he found his complete armor set, including the jumpsuit. He started changing his clothes.

Up next at the _scanner_ was Xue. After getting _scanned _she headed down the lockers to find her locker. She passed by N'kev's row of lockers to find him stripping his clothes. She quickly covered her eyes as she passed but he didn't seem to notice when she passed. But before she covered her eyes he managed to get a glimpse of him shirtless.

Xue suddenly felt a stirring in her lower region, seeing N'kev shirtless. He worked out well, had great abs and finely shaped pectorals. He was actually very handsome, come to think of it. It was his expression. N'kev always had this very...calm look. He always seemed calm and serious. But he can still be a nice person to hang out with. One thing caught her attention though; there was a peculiar looking scar on his chest.

Xue always found it quite nice to talk to N'kev even though he can be mischievous sometimes when he was with Olut goofing off. And his smile…She always felt warm and fuzzy whenever she saw him smiling at her.

'_Condemnation, did I just develop a 'crush'?'_

She quickly realized what she was thinking and stopped it and focused on changing for to her armor.

It felt good for N'kev to finally wear the armor; it was the Standard Issue Spec Ops armor. It was dark purple-ish in color. He had dreamed of this day ever since he started studying at the academy. Along with the ability of the shields, he also was excited of the Active Camouflage ability that was on the armor. He looked around and saw Olut who was now wearing his own armor. He placed his helmet over his head as he heard footsteps behind him.

He turned his head around only to see Xue, donned her armor on her. He found himself staring at her for quite a few short seconds whilst she did the same.

_'Wow her armor suits her.' _he thought to himself.

_'She looks kinda cute… wait that's an understatement; she looks sexy in It.'_ he thought but immediately blushed as he realized the adjective he just used. Good thing he was wearing his helmet so that it wasn't obvious.

"What are you two staring at? C'mon we have to go or will be late." came Olut's voice behind the 2. N'kev's snapped out of the trance and quickly turned around like nothing happened. All of them stored their clothes at the locker and headed out.

"By any chance do you know where the Spec Ops orientation room would be located?" asked Olut.

"It's just down the hall, at the training room." answered the Sangheili.

"Thanks." replied Olut.

The trio headed down the halls wearing their armors. They followed the overhead signs and soon after ended up on the said training room. They door slid open and they stepped in. There were about 11 chairs there with 5 of them vacant. N'kev, Olut and Xue took their seats on the chair.

N'kev was deep in thought as he tried to contemplate what had happened back at the armory. He couldn't believe at what he had just done.

_'I can't believe it. I was staring at her!'_ thought N'kev. He never felt attracted to a female before in his life; sure there was some pretty girls back at the academy when he was studying. But at that time he was too _busy _studying to even take notice of them that much. This was the first time something like this happened to him.

Sure Xue was nice; she was always there for N'kev along with Olut. The 2 of them were N'kev's first 2 people he ever got to talk to when he arrived at the academy.

Xue was also on the same train of thought as N'kev. She was also somewhat embarrassed at the 'staring' incident that had happened back at the armory. Ever since she saw N'kev _shirtless_ she couldn't get the image out of her head.

All of them looked up as they heard the door open and 3 people entered the room.

* * *

**If you like what you read and want more,  
Please favorite the story and  
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	11. Chapter Duel

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

**Author's Notes: Rtas was by far the most challenging for me to write a dialogue since he speaks in a 'formal tongue'. I hope I did a little bit of justice for the guy.  
**

* * *

Chapter 11 Duel

Everyone looked up when the door slid opened. Three Sangheili walked through the door. One was wearing white armor, the other a black Spec Ops armor and the other wearing the Arbiter armor.

Thel and Azu sat next to N'kev whilst Rtas walked up to the front.

"We meet again." whispered Azu to N'kev. He smiled in response. N'kev couldn't help but stare at Rtas's face. He felt like he had seen it before but just couldn't remember it.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I am Rtas 'Vadum; Special Operations Commander and the head of Homeland Security. All of you here are the best of the best. Soldiers, take a good look at your brothers and sisters, as they will be your comrades and allies in battle. Let me make it clear, that people look up to us and expect us to keep them safe from harm.

"I want all of you, to live up to your oaths. The oaths that we all said when graduated from our respective academies. You are no longer just a soldier, but a _Spec Ops Soldier_. I expect you all to do your best in protecting our wonderful race from the people that bring harm to it. And you can expect from me as well, that I will be a good leader to all of you." he cleared his throat.

"Now, orientation is basically synonymous to squad assignment. All of us here are exactly 12 people. Meaning there will be 2 squads composed of 6 members. The 2nd squad will consist of 5 members and 1 leader. The 1st squad will consist of me, the Arbiter." as he said this Thel stood up and stood next to him, "My close friend Azu 'Zestom." Azu stood up as well and stood next to Thel and crossed his arms, "And 3 other Spec Ops soldier who are in this room right now." said Rtas.

Almost all of the Sangheili in the room started whispering to one another excitedly. It was quite clear to fight alongside the Arbiter, The Spec Ops Commander _and_ his close friend would be an honor for them.

"What's the catch?" asked a Sangheili. Rtas looked at him.

"Good question. The catch is… you have to beat us or at _least_ come close to beating us in a duel using energy swords. Of course will be using 'training' energy swords, but as long as you manage to 'kill' us then your in." said Rtas with a hint of challenge.

All of the Sangheilis in the room felt their morale just got thrown out the window. It was quite clear that this was a near impossible feat. The 3 Sangheilis in front of them were the best amongst the rest. They were practically living legends. Even worse it was on a challenge that utilized energy swords. The 3 were practically _beast_ with it.

Olut nudged N'kev in the ribs, "Do you think we can beat them?" he whispered.

"I don't know. They seem…_Tough._" answered N'kev.

"What do you think Xue?" asked N'kev. Xue thought for a moment then replied,

"We'll we never know until we try." N'kev and Olut nodded. Yeah she was right; you'll never know until you try.

"Who will we be fighting against?" asked another Sangheili.

"Me, of course." said Rtas. Thel and Azu just smirked at one another.

"Your enjoying this, don't you?" asked Thel quietly to Rtas.

"Every second of it." replied Rtas.

"You know, there is a possibility you _may _get beaten." said Azu.

"Let's hope for the opportunity then." said Rtas then he turned to the students,

"So who wants to go first?" he asked.

The 'auditioning' was quite intense. All of them gave it their best since this was one of those 'once in a lifetime' achievements. But Rtas was practically a badass in the energy sword. In only 2 minutes he 'killed' his enemy with ease and grace. There were actually 4 people who actually managed to last longer. It was N'kev, Olut, Xue and another Sangheili.

Olut's fight was quite straight forward. He charged up to Rtas and gave him a death lunge. Rtas quickly dodged to his right, the blade inches from his body, and returned the attack. Qlut managed to get out of the way just in time as the blade landed onto the floor. He returned with a swift upward lunge that was deflected by Rtas's blade and was quickly countered by spinning the intertwined blade. This move made Olut loose his footing since Rtas was stronger. He toppled to the floor and was 'stabbed' by Rtas. "Very good. You nearly had me with the death lunge." was the only thing Rtas said as he helped him up.

Next was Xue's fight. Hers was quite more about strategy. She swung her blade fluidly, making accurate slashes in the air. Rtas quickly adapted and started returning the slashes. Soon there was sparks flying as the blades collided in flight. But Xue was to a great disadvantage. Rtas was a male and was generally stronger. With each collision, he added more strength. Xue's arms were beginning to numb by the constant pressure. Not long after, with a strike, her blade was sent flying out of her hand and she was 'stabbed'.

Rtas comment on her was, "Excellent usage of strategy. You nearly had me with your slashes." Xue bowed her head and returned to her seat next to N'kev.

The last fight was N'kev's. This was by far the most interesting amongst them all. He stood up and grabbed the training energy sword at the table. He stood in front of Rtas.

"Your name?" asked Rtas.

"N'kev 'Xem." answered N'kev. He noticed as he said his name, Rtas seemed to have blinked in a surprised manner. He quickly regained his composure and bowed. N'kev did the same and armed his energy sword. Thel looked interested at the side. He was curious on how N'kev would perform since he never saw N'kev fight against another person.

Everyone was at the edge of their seats as the two dueled. It would seem that they could go on forever. Rtas gave death blows that seemed impossible to evade; but to their surprise N'kev managed to dodge with ease. Sparks flew as the blades collided. The two grunted as they tried to push each other from their intertwined swords. Both broke away, being blown away at each other's force.

N'kev was running out of breath. He arms were becoming to feel numb as he had been fighting for what felt like hours to him. But he didn't want to give up since he wanted to be in the squad. He tried now to think on how he would engage him. He remembered that Rtas was good at dodging lunge and slashes, so he shouldn't do those anymore.

Then he noticed that when he attacks his _upper _body, he deflects it in a manner that leaves his legs open. N'kev quickly thought that this was the key in beating him. A crazy idea came to his mind that _seemed_ possible if done correctly.

He started backing away from Rtas leaving a large gap. As he backed away he checked the floor. It was slippery. _Perfect_. He armed his energy sword again but this time he armed it in a manner that his right elbow was covering his face. Everyone was curious at what N'kev was trying to pull off. Olut and Xue watched excitedly, wondering what N'kev would do this time. He managed to dodge lasers doing a wall run; they wondered if he would beat Rtas in the same weird manner.

N'kev took a deep breath as he ran over his plan for the last time. After making sure that everything was set he moved. Everything went into slow motion. N'kev threw his energy sword at Rtas, the same way a _ninja_ would throw his kunai knife at the enemy. The blade flew through to the air and everyone's eye followed it. Rtas who was surprised by the sudden move quickly deflected the flying blade. The blade flew through to the air upwards.

He was about to lunge at N'kev whom he was expecting to be unarmed now when he was toppled to the ground as he felt something hit his feet. He was utterly confused and was wondering who had hit him. Apparently the maneuver that N'kev did was downright unexpected. After he threw the blade he immediately ran up to Rtas. A few feet away he _slide tackled_ Rtas, the same way a soccer player tackles another player, his feet hitting Rtas' legs.

Rtas whom was diverted by the flying blade didn't notice him slide resulting to him not being able to dodge his slide tackle. N'kev saw that Rtas was falling to the ground completely stupefied by his sudden maneuver. N'kev saw his chance and quickly stood up. He reached his right just in time to catch his blade, which was in the air the entire time, on the handle. He placed his left hoof onto Rtas' back and 'stabbed' him. He could feel that time seemed have gone back to normal.

"Dead." was all N'kev could say as he was completely out of breath and was tired. Nobody moved a muscle as they were all shocked by the sudden turn of events. Rtas himself couldn't believe at what just happened. He was still trying to make everything make sense.

Olut and Xue had their mandibles agape as they witnessed at what just happened. They had seen N'kev do extraordinary things like the laser dodge but this kicked it up a notch. Azu was clearly speechless as he saw what had transpired. Never before in his life had he seen Rtas be beaten by a _rookie_ Spec Ops Soldier.

Thel on the other hand was swelling with pride as he saw N'kev beat Rtas. He was filled with pride as he realized his student had managed to beat a Spec Ops Commander. At this statement he couldn't help but clap his hands to congratulate him. Azu was surprised when Thel started clapping but realized he deserved it.

N'kev felt embarrassed as he removed his hoof from Rtas back and looked at his audience. They were clapping for him. He just smiled weakly and bowed. Thel and Azu came to the stage and helped Rtas up. A few moments later Rtas cleared his throat.

"I have said my word and I am keeping my word. N'kev 'Xem has managed to beat and he has now earned the right to be in my squad." Everyone clapped at the statement and N'kev even received a few 'Nice ones!' comments from the audience. Rtas cleared his throat and everyone became quiet again.

"I have studied all your techniques and I am quite proud to say you were all very good. But I can only accept 2 more Sangheili who had managed to nearly beat me with their skills. I call upon…" everyone was quiet as they hoped for the best.

"....Olut 'Fulgal to come here and join us." As Olut heard this, he couldn't believe what he was hearing. He was actually chosen by Rtas to join on their squad. He wanted to scream so bad but kept it in and walked towards N'kev. Everyone clapped for him and became quiet again as they waited for the final member to joint Rtas' squad.

"And lastly I would like to call... Xue 'Quaram to come and join us." Xue couldn't help but blush as all eyes turned onto her as she walked down the path and stood next to N'kev and Olut. The 3 bowed as their fellow Spec Ops gave them a standing oblation.

The second squad was leaded by the other Sangheili who also came close to beating Rtas. Everyone was dismissed out of their room and went to the lockers to change. They were all given orders to report back to their squad tomorrow.

"That was quite amazing, what you did back there." said Thel. N'kev looked at him.

"Grandfather, you're the Arbiter, you had done things way more amazing than that." he replied in a whisper to avoid anyone from overhearing. Thel just smiled at him.

But there was one thing that was bothering N'kev; he noticed the fact that Rtas seemed to have flinched a little when he heard him say his name; _That_ and the fact that Rtas' face seemed very familiar to him; oddly familiar.

Rtas walked up to them and said,

"You 3 should go home and get some rest. Report back to tomorrow here, ok?" asked Rtas. The 3 nodded in acknowledgment. Olut looked at the wall clock at the side as they passed it and said it was already 6:00PM.

"Hey you guys want to hang out, we've got nothing to do anyway." suggested N'kev.

"Sure why not." said Xue.

"Sorry I can't, my back is aching and I need to get some rest. You two can go I'll go home." said Olut.

"Too bad, ok then." said N'kev. Xue suddenly felt panic-stricken. She didn't want to be alone with N'kev. Not now that she had just developed a crush on him. But the damage was already done and she couldn't do anything about it anymore.

They headed into the armory and changed their clothing. The armor where they stored their clothes earlier now had their last names. It was now officially theirs. Only Spec Ops Soldiers get to have a locker at HQ. They changed their clothes and were headed for the main entrance. They exited HQ and Olut said goodbye to them as he rode onto a bus.

"Where should we go? A restaurant? I've got some extra money," Xue told him.

"That sounds like a nice idea, I have extra too...I'll buy for you." Xue chuckled.

"That's ok I can pay for my own meal, thank you." she replied.

The 2 then went down the streets in search of a restaurant to eat at.

* * *

**If you like what you read and want more,  
Please favorite the story and  
leave some review!**


	12. Chapter Burst

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 12 Burst

The sky of Sangheilios was slowly fading to purplish hue as the 3 suns begin to set. The city lights were starting to appear and it looked quite good in the night. They walked down the street; passing by several shops and restaurants, many people were walking about, including soldiers. A few bars were full of soldiers, all drinking and having a good time with each other. No need to worry about drunkenness from them as well, they were very self-disciplined...most anyway.

Xue was walking down the street looking around for a good restaurant when he noticed N'kev walking in an uncomfortable manner. She rounded up on him and asked,

"Are you ok?" N'kev blinked at her.

"Yeah I'm fine." said N'kev weakly. Xue looked at him but didn't ask any further. They were about keep going down the street when she heard her name called.

"Xue! Xue is that you?" said a Sangheili from their behind. They turned around and saw a female Sangheili approaching them. Xue immediately recognized her as, Uzuri 'Quaram, her older sister.

"Sis, what are you doing here?" she asked Uzuri as she hugged her.

"I just got off work early today. I decided to eat out." she answered. Then she looked at N'kev.

"Who's your friend." she asked with a slight smirk.

"N'kev 'Xem, N'kev meet my older sister, Uzuri 'Quaram." N'kev nodded to her sister.

"Nice to meet you." said N'kev.

"Likewise." replied Uzuri.

"We were about to eat dinner as well, want to join us?" asked Xue.

"That would be nice." replied Uzuri. Xue found it quite odd that her sister accepted the offer since she always preferred not to bother other people's activity. She also seemed to be eyeing N'kev carefully. Nevertheless, Xue let it slide and they continued walking.

"So...which one?" asked N'kev as they paused on the sidewalk, looking at the different restaurants.

"Doesn't matter," said Uzuri, shrugging. He looked at Xue, who looked back.

"So...?" he asked.

"Oh, I don't know," she said, shaking her head.

"I suppose anyone will do...this one?" he asked, simply looking to the one they stood in front of. It was a nice a restaurant. Simple yet sophisticated looking.

"Looks fine," Xue said. They stepped in and looked around. Still a bit early for dinner, as not many patrons were seated about, so they took the table at the side that had a window showing the streets. The sky was getting darker and the stars were beginning to show against the dark backdrop.

"If they only had this back at Earth." said N'kev, looking at the view. Uzuri watched him and then said,

"Why?" Uzuri asked curiously.

"I grew up in Earth, it would be nice to see these kinds of stars there." answered N'kev.

"Wait, you grew up in Earth?" asked Uzuri.

"Come to think of it you never told me about your life before you came to the academy." added Xue. N'kev was about to tell them his story when the waitress came. They ordered their food and beverages and N'kev began telling his history.

"I, my Mother and Father lived at a state back here in Sangheilios before we moved to High Charity. Sorry, if you're curious on what state I used to live in back then, I can't answer your question. I was young back then so I couldn't remember. I was very young when we moved to High Charity; about 5 years old. Its miracle I can still remember the time when we lived at High Charity.

"We were actually _on_ High Charity when the Great Schism happened." said N'kev. Uzuri and Xue were listening intently. Xue never heard of N'kev's history until now. She was never _on_ High Charity when the rebellion happened. But she had heard stories of what had happened up there. _Gruesome_ stories mostly involving a parasite know as the Flood.

"Did you see the so called 'Flood'?" asked Uzuri.

"Luckily no; anyways my Mother died as we boarded a phantom, escaping High Charity. She was killed by a cold blooded brute…" he then continued his story. He told them about him meeting his future-sister Jessica Thompson. He told them about his father's sacrifice in order for them to get saved from the Loyalist group that had taken over the camp. He continued onto the point where Zen manages to find them just in time as a brute was about to crush them with a gravity hammer.

Xue now finally understood why N'kev seemed always calm and serene, even under tense situations. He must have learnt back when he was a kid that panicking won't solve anything. It was quite nerve-racking for her to hear that someone out there had experienced trouble like no other. Here she was enjoying her life like a normal child whilst N'kev was out there trying to survive.

N'kev was absentmindedly pushing his spoon around with his claw, as he told them his life story. He never felt ashamed nor seemed reluctant to tell his story. It would have taken a lot of courage to tell someone your life story, which consisted mostly of death, in a calm manner. He must've learnt a lot of self-control to not break down whenever he reminisces his past, which consisted of nothing but violence.

Xue and Uzuri watched him sympathetically as he told them his story. Xue couldn't believe how lucky she was to have a family that was still alive. Let alone, lucky enough not see your parents die right in front of you nor not to face death right in the face.

"My step-father, Zen, was kind to me even though I was…_Different_." said N'kev.

"Even though I was only a single Sangheili child I never felt…Alone…Because I always had my family, my 4 uncles and my grandfather." added N'kev.

"You have 4 uncles?" asked Uzuri.

"Yep, 2 humans and 2 Sangheilis; my grandfather is a Sangheili." answered N'kev.

"So that's basically my story." finished N'kev.

"You know his grandfather is nice." said Xue to Uzuri.

"Really?" she asked.

"Yeah, he even let us ride with him to get to HQ today." said Xue.

"Oh… By the way, how did your orientation happen today?" asked Uzuri.

"It went well… Not to mention N'kev here kicked Rtas 'Vadum's ass." said Xue to Uzuri who was surprised at the statement.

"What? Rtas 'Vadum as in _the_ Rtas 'Vadum?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'll tell you later back at the house." saod Xue. Uzuri looked at N'kev surprised at his achievement. N'kev was still a rookie and he already beaten a high ranking officer. N'kev just looked at the floor, clearly embarrassed by Xue's big mouth.

"So N'kev… What's your grandfather's job?" asked Xue as she ate her food. The food just got delivered and they began eating. Uzuri looked up as well. N'kev discreetly flinched as he heard the question. A flinch where Xue noticed but Uzuri didn't.

'_DAMN!' _though N'kev to himself. He had never asked his grandfather on what to tell people when they asked for his job.

"He's um….A…Soldier." answered N'kev.

"What rank is he?" asked Uzuri.

"He's um… a zealot." answered N'kev.

"What's your grandfather's name again?" asked Xue.

"V'rey 'Evanam." answered N'kev. Xue nodded not prying any further. Her senses were telling her that N'kev was obviously lying _again_. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. N'kev wasn't the liar type. But something was forcing him to lie which she hasn't figured out what.

After they had finished eating, Xue and Uzuri excused themselves to go to the bathroom; N'kev couldn't help but feel bad as he lied through his mandibles again. The guilt was completely eating him in the inside; if he had to lie again he'll burst through the seams and be forced to tell the truth.

At the bathroom: Xue was about to enter a stall when Uzuri said,

"You like him, don't you?" Xue turned to her, puzzled.

"No I don't." she didn't know why she lied but she did.

"Don't deny it. I noticed the way when you're around him; there's seems to be something there that is not present whenever I see you amongst other boys.

"Was I really that obvious?" asked Xue. She knew she couldn't lie to her sister; her sister always had a knack for knowing things like this.

"Yup; and don't worry he _seems_ like a good boy." said Uzuri.

"So… Does he like me?" asked Xue. Her sister had the uncanny gift of being able to read people's… actions… in a manner that will tell her certain things.

"Yes, lover girl," Uzuri smirked, "and he's attracted to you."

"How do you know? The way he looks? I saw it too."

"That and the enormous boner he thought I didn't notice under the table. I noticed he was struggling not to have one while walking, but failing entirely, which is why he sounded so awkward earlier when we were at the street." Uzuri said, now grinning.

"Oh!" Xue giggled. Now she understood why N'kev was like that earlier. He was trying his best to conceal the boner he had while walking; but it only resulted to him walking uncomfortable. When Xue asked her earlier if he was fine, N'kev was trying his best to drone out his thoughts. He was concentrating very hard making his voice sound weak.

"You should tell him how you feel; you two make a good couple. I gotta hand it to you, you really know how to pick them." said Uzuri with a sly smile then she entered her stall. Xue sighed and went into the stall, doing her business.

_'I can't believe my crush on him only developed now. We've been friends since the start of the academy and we only got attracted to one another, years later._ Xue smiled, and excited. She really wanted to get to know him, but couldn't have the guilty pleasure of thinking about him nude.

She finished up and washed her hands. Uzuri came out moments later and washed her hands as well. Xue was about to exit when Uzuri placed her hand on her shoulder.

"I have to warn you Xue, N'kev seems to be hiding something." said Uzuri.

"You noticed to huh?" asked Xue. Uzuri nodded,

"Especially when we asked him about his grandfather… He seems reluctant on the matter." said Uzuri. Xue nodded. It would seem that N'kev wasn't fooling anyone. People _were_ starting to notice him lying.

"You should ask him about it." said Uzuri.

"How?" asked Xue. She had tried by herself and even with the help of Olut but N'kev wouldn't budge.

"You're a girl with a crush on him. He likes you. You like him. Solution is simple, flirt with him then you'll get your answers." said Uzuri with a smirk.

"_What?_ I can't do _that _to him._"_ exasperated Xue.

"What's stopping you then?" asked Uzuri. Xue just sighed. Her sister was right. She wanted to find a solution on how to get him to spill the beans and it was right in front of her.

"Ok… I'll try." said Xue. The two went back to the table. They paid the bill and headed out. Uzuri received a text message saying she had to come back to her workplace since she was needed again. The 2 waved goodbye to her and boarded a bus heading back to the suburbs on where they lived. On the bus, N'kev felt his heartbeat race faster as Xue rested her head on his shoulder.

N'kev's head was swimming with images of Xue as the bus drove on. He tried his best to tune them out but his attempt was unsuccessful. He couldn't help but think about her. He couldn't even _believe_ what he was thinking. He had to laugh at the idea of it all. He had been friends with Xue at the beginning of his studying career at the academy. And throughout all that time he never thought of her as more than a friend. But now it would seem that he had developed a crush on her.

He couldn't even help but goggle at her neck (In Sangheilis, males are sexually attracted to the female's neck). It took _all_ the self-control he had to stop himself from licking and burying his face in Xue's neck. He wanted to lick it so badly, it began to _hurt_.

Luckily though his _torture_ was over when the bus stopped at their stop, the SMA. The 2 of them hopped off the bus and stretched a little as the bus rounded onto the corner. It was around 7:30PM now and the streets only contained a few people. N'kev was about to turn around to start walking back to their house when Xue placed her hand on his shoulder.

"N'kev you were lying to us again back at the restaurant weren't you?" asked Xue as he turned around. He blinked as he heard the question. He was about to say 'No, I wasn't' but he stopped himself. If he were to say that he'll be lying again. He felt the guilt of lying slowly eat him alive. He was never a good liar; not good enough to keep doing for a long time.

"Well?" asked Xue, narrowing her eyes.

"I…I…" stuttered N'kev; he couldn't bring himself to lie anymore. Xue was staring daggers at him, expecting an answer that N'kev knew he couldn't tell; and at that point he _burst_.

"AHH!!!" he shouted as his emotions flooded through. Luckily though there was no one around when he screamed. Xue was taken aback by his sudden outburst.

"I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!" he shouted to the heavens. Xue on the other hand was surprised to see N'kev act this way.

"I…I…I'm sorry. I have to go." said N'kev and he turned around and ran.

"N'kev wait!" shouted Xue but he was running at top speed and was already at the corner. N'kev ran back to his house. His mind was at complete disarray. The idea of him lying again and again wasn't good to him; it'll only result to him bursting near the end when he can't handle it anymore. He rounded onto the corner and placed a poker face as he pressed the doorbell on their house. A few minutes later it opened revealing, Jess on the other side.

"You're late today." she said as he let him pass through the door.

"Are you hungry, we are eating dinner right now." said Jess.

"No… I already ate. I'm tired, I'm going to go to bed." he said as he went upstairs.

"Ok." said Jess as he went back to the dining room.

Later that night, N'kev lied down on his bed, thinking of the things that had happened. He knew his sudden outburst in front of Xue wouldn't go unquestioned. Now he had to think of a good lie that would explain his outburst. Lying was uncomfortable to him but he knew he had to do it.

Another thing was also crossing his mind. Throughout the time he was lying on the bed, his head was swimming again with thoughts involving Xue. He was even having the guilty pleasure of wanting to see her in the nude. In the end he had enough; He had to...become intimate with her. The crush was driving him mad, and he had to spend some alone time with her.

He went to sleep with his mind still thinking of Xue. In the end as he slept he had dreams of kissing Xue back at the bus stop instead of the event that happened earlier.

* * *

**If you like what you read and want more,  
Please favorite the story and  
leave some review!**


	13. Chapter Plotting

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 13 Plotting

N'kev woke up. He had a dream of kissing Xue but it abruptly changed to the dream of the 2 people at the cliff. Up to this point he still never understood the meaning of those dreams. But he made up his mind. He'll follow Zen's advice and tell Thel about it. He may know something.

After taking a bath he went downstairs to eat some breakfast. He greeted his mother good morning and began eating. Z'jo and Zide came in and took their breakfast. As they ate Z'jo nudged N'kev.

"Is it true? Did you really beat Rtas 'Vadum?" asked Z'jo.

"Yes. It's true." N'kev answered. Z'jo's eyes widened.

"See it was true!" he said turning to his brother.

"You must be really good with the energy sword then." asked Zide.

"A little." said N'kev humbly. He wasn't really good at the energy sword. He could actually call that victory just a lucky victory.

"You're like an 'energy sword prodigy'." said Z'jo.

"I wouldn't say I'm a prodigy. My father didn't train me in the arts; he actually never handled the weapon since he wasn't a soldier." said N'kev.

"Hmm…" was only Z'jo's response.

After eating breakfast, N'kev hopped onto the car along with Thel since they were both headed to HQ. Along the way N'kev told Thel about his odd dreams. Luckily though, Thel didn't respond the same way Zen did.

"I'm sorry N'kev, I can't really help you in that matter. I myself don't understand why you should be having dreams like that. You told me you don't know the 2 people?" asked Thel.

"Yes, I've never met them before. But the faces are somehow vaguely familiar." he answered.

"Nevertheless it may help us understand it if you can recognize the people. Be sure to tell us when you figured out who they are." said Thel.

"I will." answered N'kev.

The 2 didn't pick up Olut and Xue since they were already at the HQ. N'kev was still pondering on how he could explain what had happen to him yesterday while changing to his armor. After changing, he followed Thel to the meeting room where all of them would be there.

Thel opened the door and went in the meeting room. The meeting room was pretty much like any ordinary meeting room. There was a long table at the middle with chairs surrounding it. There was a whiteboard at the side with some information regarding the whereabouts of the Loyalist.

At the other end of the table sat Rtas 'Vadum. At his right side sat Azu 'Zestom, in front of Azu was the leader of B squad. Next to Azu was Olut whom in front of was Xue. N'kev sat next to Olut, avoiding the gaze of Xue. Thel sat at the opposite end of the table, right in front of Rtas.

"I have called upon this meeting because we have just received important information." began Rtas. "We have received information on the whereabouts of the Loyalist who were rumored to be hiding in Kebol City. Sources say they are in an abandon warehouse at the industrial zone of the city.

"Of course we can't be sure if the information is 100% since they move everyday to avoid detection. We can't just easily storm in there since we don't know there exact numbers." said Rtas.

"So what do you propose to do?" asked Azu.

"Simple, we plan to send a recon team there to check if the info is correct. Once confirmed they will try to find a way on where they plan to go next. When we get that will head there first and lock the area down." answered Rtas.

"Which squad are you sending?" asked Thel.

"Squad B. Arbiter you're going to come with them." ordered Rtas.

"Fine by me." said Thel standing up. He was followed outside by the leader of B squad.

"Why not Squad A Rtas?" asked Azu annoyed.

"Well, I can't go since the Councilors want another update on the matter. I can't send you or the rookies since you don't have experience in Recon missions. I can't send the Arbiter alone there since we don't know what these Loyalists are capable off." answered Rtas.

"So what are going to do?" asked Olut.

"Consider this day, a day off." answered Rtas as he went out of the room.

"Wow and I thought when I join the Spec Ops I'll be exhausted from all the work we'll do." said Olut.

"Well you thought wrong. If anyone needs me I'll be at the cafeteria." said Azu as he left the room.

The 3 decided to head back to the armory and change since they weren't going to be doing anything. They changed back to their civvies and Olut asked,

"So you guys got any plans?"

"Olut, I and N'kev are going out… Alone." N'kev was surprised by her bluntness as well as Olut. Well N'kev's wish just became true; he wanted to have some 'alone' time with Xue and he got it.

"Did I miss something yesterday?" he asked N'kev who averted his gaze.

"See you later." Xue said, grabbing N'kev's hand after he just managed to pull his shirt on the dragging him along, a shoe loose on his foot, but he stamped it on while trying to keep up with Xue's stride.

"Ok… That was weird." said Olut as he headed out of the armory soon after.

* * * * *

"You do know he is going to follow us right?" asked N'kev as Xue dragged him along.

"Yes." answered Xue. N'kev allowed himself to be dragged along by Xue to wherever her destination. She actually liked the feeling of Xue's hand grasping his. Xue on the other hand liked it as well. Her sister actually told her last night that, if a guy doesn't react in a defensive manner if a girl grabs his hand, it means he likes it. She smiled internally as her doubts of N'kev liking her were confirmed.

"Where are we going anyway?" asked N'kev as they passed down another intersection.

"Middle Park." answered Xue. Middle Park wasn't actually that far away from the HQ. It was actually just a few blocks away.

* * * * *

"Where are those 2 headed?" asked Olut to himself while he looked at N'kev and Xue heading out from the HQ from his binoculars. He managed to borrow one from the armory just he left. He stationed himself at the 2nd floor rooftop of the HQ and he used this as a vantage point. Just like N'kev guessed he was spying on them.

"What are you doing?" asked a voice that came from behind. He turned around abruptly feeling embarrassed at being caught. He recognized the Sangheili as Azu.

"Uh... Nothing." he answered. He hid the binoculars from sight by hiding it behind him.

"That doesn't seem nothing." said Azu eyeing him suspiciously. He looked Olut over and noticed he was hiding a binocular behind him.

"Who are you spying at?" he asked curiously.

"What are you talking about?" asked Olut bewildered.

"Don't give me that lip, I know your spying so spill who?" asked Azu.

"Ok… Its N'kev and Xue; happy?" answered Olut.

"Really… Can I see?" asked Azu. Olut handed him the binoculars and Azu saw N'kev and Xue walking down the street headed for Middle Park.

"It would seem that they are on a date." said Azu handing the binoculars back.

"You think?" asked Olut. Azu just rolled his eyes.

* * * * *

"What's your status?" asked Thel over the radio. They had arrived over the abandoned warehouse near the industrial zone of Kebol City. He had ordered Squad B to make a perimeter around the warehouse. 2 were on lookout, 3 were at the van they used, ready to go at any moment, and Thel and the leader of Squad B: Karif Ki'mal

"Were set at the vantage point here, sir." responded one of the Spec Ops over the radio.

"You know what to do. Stealth is necessary here so avoid detection at best. We are only here to confirm the sources and get info on their next destination. Does everyone understand that?" asked Thel.

"Sir, yes, sir!" responded the Sangheilis over the radio.

"Use active camo now, I'll take point." said Thel as he activated his Active Camo. His active camouflage actually got 'updated' so now he can go invisible for longer times. He activate his active camo and a few moments later his body disappeared with only a faint shimmer exposing his presence. His looked over beckoned his squad to follow him and they did so.

They approached the broken down warehouse that seemed to be _dead_. There was a fire exit at the side that enabled them to get to the roof. They looked through the skylight and they were surprised at what they saw. Inside the building was some sort of giant machine that centered on a big circular glass cage. Thel couldn't clearly see what was in it but he knew it was bad.

* * * * *

"Hurry it up! We are leaving in only a few minutes!" shouted one of the Loyalist named Gressi 'Giva. He was the head leader of the Loyalist.

"Sir, we are halfway done with the packing. We will leave in a few minutes." said one of his men.

"Very good." replied Gressi.

"If I may ask sir, where are we headed this time?" asked the Sangheili.

"We are leaving state; we will head to the 'Vadum state and there we will make our Last Stand." answered Gressi.

He walked over to the big machine in the middle of the room. The caged glass in it was covered with yellow blood and littered with dead bodies. They had finally succeeded on making the perfect weapon they will use for the rebellion.

"How is the weapon?" asked Gressi as he approached a Sangheili in a lab coat examining a pistol type weapon on the table.

"It's coming nicely sir, I'm just loading the ammo now." answered the Sangheili. He grabbed the pistol and loaded a clip of bullets that were colored yellow.

"Can I ask how it kills again?" asked Gressi. He asked the Sangheili the question because he himself never fully understood how the weapon kills the target.

"Well sir, from the Flood specimens we have managed to gather, we have managed to extract their _infecting_ capabilities and put them into the said bullet. When the bullet hits the target it will open spilling the poison that kills the target slowly devouring his insides. Instead of turning him into a Flood form it will destroy him from the inside out unless _immediate_ medical attention is given to him. But even if he were given medical attention there is still only 45% chance of him surviving." explained the Sangheili.

"Wonderful. And I though the Flood would be nothing but a pest." said Gressi. The only downside to their said weapon is that they hadn't managed to mass produce it since they had only managed to capture only a few Flood Forms. In exact number, they had only managed to produce 21 guns that can fire the said bullet. The 19 were used up for testing purposes so they only had 2 guns that can fire the said bullet. Worse still is that each gun can only fire 7 bullets and no reloads allowed since there is practically no ammo.

When the Loyalists were given the opportunity of this so called ultimate weapon, they immediately jumped the band wagon since they were becoming desperate. For the last 8 years of fighting a few were even having thoughts of leaving the Loyalist group. You could say that this was there Last Stand.

* * * * *

Thel couldn't believe his ears. The Loyalists were really becoming desperate. They even resorted to handling the Flood to use it as a weapon. Thel took note of where they were headed, the 'Vadum state. He allowed himself to guess on how many Loyalists were there. After a few seconds of thinking, there were about 200 of them there; Two big for 12 people to handle, even with the help of Rtas, Azu and himself. The Loyalists were pretty much making this there Last Stand. The Last Stand at 'Vadum state.

"We've done our job here, we need to get back to HQ now." said Thel over the radio.

"Sir, yes sir." said the Sangheilis.

* * *

**If you like what you read and want more,  
Please favorite the story and  
leave some review!**


	14. Chapter Recruitment

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 14 Recruitment

N'kev and Xue walked down the street and eventually ended up on Middle Park. Xue had dragged N'kev here since he wanted to talk to him in private. Middle Park had trees that were tall, a large fountain in one of the squares. Not to mention that a river runs through the park itself. They could see a lot of people picnicking at the side and enjoying the sun.

It was the perfect place to lounge around when you've got nothing to do. You could actually lie down on the grass and enjoy the scenery. The trees actually make a perfect cover from the direct sunlight and it gives a nice cold breeze.

N'kev didn't quite understand why Xue dragged him there but he was sure of one thing. She was going to ask him about why he freaked out last night. He was still thinking of good excuse why but noting comes to mind. His mind was completely blank. Xue dragged him to a spot near the trees. She sat on the ground, her feet extended outward.

"Sit down." she ordered N'kev to sit; he complied. They were silent for a few seconds until N'kev broke the ice.

"I'm sorry." said N'kev.

"Sorry about what?" she asked.

"About last night; I shouldn't have done that. I shouldn't have freaked out like that in front of you." said N'kev.

"You shouldn't be sorry about that. But can I ask why you freaked out?" asked Xue.

"It's because…" said N'kev trailing. N'kev just sighed and let his body fall to the ground. He lied down on the ground looking up at the sky as he contemplated on how to tell her.

"Because…?" asked Xue. She knew she was finally getting to him and it was only a matter of time.

"It's because I can't make myself to lie anymore." said N'kev weakly.

"So you really were lying to us." concluded Xue.

"Yes. There I admit it." said N'kev, closing his eyes and breathing deeply.

Xue couldn't help but stare at his expression. He was so calm and serene looking. It was the favorite expression Xue always wanted to see in N'kev. It made him look more handsome to her. She allowed herself to lie down as well on the ground.

"Why are you lying to us N'kev, were your friends." said Xue.

"I know…" said N'kev.

"Then why lie?" she asked.

"It's because I promised myself I'll keep that secret hidden as long as he tells me too. And you know that I don't break promises." said N'kev. Then an idea crossed Xue's mind.

"Well then, can you promise me." said Xue sitting up right. N'kev sat up as well looking at her.

"Promise me, you'll tell us the moment he says you no longer need to keep the secret. In return I'll drop the subject completely. Deal?" asked Xue. N'kev thought for a moment then responded,

"Deal." then he lied down again.

"Can I ask why you sent Olut away?" asked N'kev. Xue was completely surprised at this question since she wasn't prepared to answer this kind of question. She lied down again on the ground then said,

"It's because… I wanted to hang out… with _you_." N'kev noticed that emphasis on you and gulped. There was an awkward silence between the two since they didn't know what to say,

"So… Do you miss your life back on Earth?" asked Xue. N'kev was surprised by the question but nevertheless responded,

"Well sometimes, yes." answered N'kev. He felt Xue's hand slowly placed itself near his. This made him somewhat uncomfortable since the very action was giving him an erection. He did the only thing that can help him conceal it; he retracted his left leg to hide it behind it.

"What do you guys _do_ on earth when you were still a kid?" asked Xue. She mentally smirked to herself as she noticed N'kev's body reaction to her hand. She even smiled as she saw N'kev trying to hide it.

"Well…" began N'kev. His voice was becoming weak again due to him concentrating to make _it_ go away.

"Since my father and mother landed themselves a job as journalists for the local paper, we mostly go to the tourist _spots_." said N'kev his voice straining at the very end.

"Like what?" asked Xue. She had to smile to herself at N'kev's feeble attempt to try and make it go away.

"Well we went to this place they call, a Vineyard." then he began telling her all about the things they did back at Bonn Ridge Vineyard. How they saw the grapes out in the fields to the point where they did the grape picking and ate it. He also told her about how they package the wines; from liquids into the bottles.

He also ended up telling her as well about Zen being drunk after drinking _The Big One_. She laughed at that point.

"Really, your father actually told your Uncle that he was _hot_?" asked Xue.

"Yep, my uncle told me himself." answered N'kev.

"So… Where did you guys live before moving here?" asked N'kev.

"Wait I haven't told you my story yet?" asked Xue as a counter question.

"No, you haven't. You only told me that you used to live at a state; you didn't even mention the name, and you guys moved here." said N'kev.

"Oh…In that case well… We used to live back at the 'Vadum state. Us Sangheilis, as you know, some of them separate their children from parents and put them in common rooms. Well I was lucky enough to _not_ be one of those children. I managed to live a normal life as a child. Well aside from the training-to-become-a-soldier, I managed to live normally. I had childhood friends and even made a best friend. Well _had _a best friend." she said gloomily at the last sentence. At this point N'kev _body_ was back to normal.

"_Had _a best friend? What happen to her?" asked N'kev.

"_Him_ actually; he died." said Xue.

"Oh… I'm sorry." said N'kev feeling sorry for actually asking the question.

"Its ok." said Xue.

"How'd…he die?" asked N'kev.

"No one knows, it was just on that fateful day that his father announced him dead. The authorities actually tried to search for him but eventually they couldn't find a body so they settled with him being dead." answered Xue.

"That's…horrible." said N'kev.

"Yes it is. But something tells me he wasn't dead. A gut feeling is telling he wasn't." said Xue hopefully turning her head to face him.

"Well let's just hope your feeling is right." said N'kev turning his head to face her.

That was when N'kev just realized how close they were lying to each other. They were awfully close, their mandibles just touching, inches, as well as their legs and feet. They stared at each other and life seems to pass them by. Everything seemed to dissolve around them as they stared deeply at one another…

…Until someone loudly cleared his throat.

The two of them looked at the person. It was Azu who was smirking at them. Behind him was Olut...they seemed to be averting their gaze from them, and that only made Xue and N'kev confused. She looked at him, and he looked back...then she noticed that N'kev's erection was back...and she noticed her own genital opening up widely, wanting him inside her. The two of them turned violet, and shuffled awkwardly to their feet.

"Ok, now that the awkwardness is over. C'mon you two were being called back to HQ." said Azu turning around. Olut just smirked at them

"Busted." he said playfully before following Azu chuckling.

The 2 stared at each other, turn purpled and followed them.

"Smooth moves, mate." whispered Olut to N'kev as they made their way back to HQ. N'kev just stayed silent. Xue was up ahead walking along with Azu.

"Took you long enough to make your move." whispered Olut. This made N'kev look at him surprised. He was about to deny himself making a move on Xue when Olut cut him off,

"Don't deny it. And in my opinion you two look good together." said Olut. N'kev smiled.

"You think so?" he asked.

"Yes, and I support you all the way." said Olut.

"So…It's ok with you if I take Xue?" asked N'kev. He wasn't really the type of person who wants to be in a competition. He just gives them up.

"Obviously yes; and for your information, I only thought of Xue as a friend and will stay as a friend." said Olut. N'kev nodded.

"But how should I tell her?" asked N'kev.

"Its simple just tell her the 3 magic words; and hope for the best." answered Olut.

"I can't do that. Besides whenever I try to tell her things like that my throat goes dry." said N'kev.

"That may be a problem." said Olut.

The 2 were silent as they made there way back to HQ. They followed Azu back to the meeting room where Thel and Rtas were there along with Karif.

"We've got bad news." said Karif as they entered.

"Take your seats." said Rtas and all of them complied.

"The recent recon mission that The Arbiter had accomplished has given us some very important information. It has been confirmed that the Loyalist_ are_ here in Sangheilios and we know were they are going next. They plan to go to the 'Vadum state and that's where they'll hold their Last Stand. Our main problem is that they seemed to have developed a weapon that can easily kill all of us. Second problem is that we are greatly outnumbered since they number in hundreds. The current number of soldiers currently in the building right now is 12." said Rtas.

"What?" N'kev asked surprised by the number.

"You heard me correctly. There are only 12 soldiers in this building that can fight them at this current time." answered Rtas.

"Why? I thought we had an army." said Olut.

"Yes, we do have an army _but_ they aren't _here_ they are out in outer space, doing search and destroy missions about the other Halo rings and attending peace meetings." said Rtas.

"How in the forerunners are we going to stop them if there are only _12_ of us?" asked Azu.

"We are currently working on that Azu. Karif I need you to go to your squad and tell them to prepare. We're leaving before nightfall headed to the 'Vadum state." said Rtas. Karif followed the orders and headed out.

"Do we even know where they _will be_ in the 'Vadum state?" asked Xue.

"Unfortunately, no; they were careful enough not to speak of the specific location." said Thel.

"We are actually contacting the authorities there to scout ahead for any suspicious looking vehicles." added Thel.

"Xue isn't your home state the 'Vadum state?" asked N'kev.

"Yes. I hope we can resolve this issue with minimal destruction of the state." said Xue hopefully.

N'kev sighed, this was becoming drastic. The Loyalists were planning on making a Last Stand at the 'Vadum state and Last Stands usually mean they are going out with a bang. They were clearly outnumbered; 12 against hundreds. Let alone 9 of those soldiers are still rookies when it comes to battle; counting himself and his friends.

Only 3 have actual battlefield experience. It was Rtas, Thel and Azu. The 12 of them are doing a Forlorn Hope. N'kev cringed at the idea. He didn't want to die. He was still too young to die, literally.

"If only we had war veterans helping us…" said Olut to himself. Then Thel and N'kev felt like they were slapped at the faces. The idea was right in front of them and they didn't see it. They knew the perfect war veterans that can help them win the fight.

The 2 of them looked up at the same time which made Olut and Xue stare at them.

"What is it?" asked Olut to N'kev. He just ignored him because Thel spoke.

"I know where we can recruit war veterans…" said Thel. Rtas seemed intrigued then he understood what Thel was implying since he had met them already.

"Are you talking about_ them_?" he asked. Thel nodded.

"Does this mean _its out_?" asked N'kev. Thel looked at him then to Olut and Xue who was looking back at Thel then to N'kev.

"Unfortunately, yes. The situation requires _it_ to be _out_ in order for us to understand each other." said Thel. N'kev nodded. Olut, Azu and Xue just looked more confused by the sudden conversation.

"What do you mean '_it's out'_?" asked Olut to N'kev confused. He didn't answer his question but instead he just smirked at him. Sensing their bewilderment, Rtas asked,

"Do _they_ know?" he asked to Thel referring to Azu, Olut and Xue. The 3 looked at Rtas as they noticed they were being asked.

Thel just smirked at Azu, Olut and Xue and answered Rtas, "No, can I borrow a phone; I need to make a phone call."

* * * * *

Zen was at the house lounging, today was their rest day. Viper, Jess and Stahn were at the computer editing the photos. Nira was cuddled up to Zen as they watched the television. Z'jo and Zide were playing chess. It would seem that Zide was trying to checkmate Z'jo.

"Aha, checkmate!" he exclaimed. Z'jo just clicked his mandibles.

"Nuh, uh." he replied as he moved his king away to safety.

"What?! Aw man…." said Zide as his plan failed.

Then the phone rang…

"I'll get it!" cried Zen as he stood up and approached the telephone. He picked it up.

"This is Zen Black speaking, who is this?" asked Zen.

And then they began to converse.

"Oh, what is it? ...What? ...Really? ...That bad eh? …need help? … Yup, all of us are here… We'll be heading there right away. Oh and were bringing 2 extra people that can help, is that ok? …Ok, we'll see you there, be sure to brief us." then he hanged up.

"Who was it?" asked Nira.

"It was Thel." said Zen as he strode back into the living room. Zide looked up,

"Wow, Father rarely calls home, it must be important." said Zide.

"What was it about?" asked Stahn as he diverted his attention from the computer screen to Zen.

"Before that, Viper is it all right if your paper gets delayed a little?" Zen asked.

"Its ok, why what's wrong?" asked Viper as he turned around and face Zen. Zen smirked,

"Because I need you 4 to get armored up (he referred to Z'jo, Zide, Stahn and Nira.) And you 2 (he referred to Jess and Viper) to pack up. We're heading to the Headquarters of Homeland of Security, because were back in business." said Zen.

* * *

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	15. Chapter Secrets Revealed

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 15 Secrets Revealed

"What is _going _on?" asked Olut completely confused.

"They'll be arriving soon. Let's meet them at the lobby." said Thel.

"I'll wait here." said Rtas.

"Me too." said Azu.

"C'mon you 3; let's wait at the lobby." ordered Thel.

"Yes sir!" saluted N'kev and he went out the door. Olut and Xue were still bewildered but followed the order.

Olut and Xue followed him down to the lobby after suiting up. There they waited with Thel for their arrival. Xue and Olut couldn't stop looking around. Thel or N'kev wouldn't explain anything to them.

* * * * *

Zen went up to their bedroom. They had packed their armor when they went to Sangheilios for various unknown reasons. He went in and opened a secret compartment at the side of their dresser. It hissed and it slid open revealing two armor racks, one containing a set of black Spec Ops armor and the other a set of cobalt colored Creator Armor.

He couldn't believe that he was going to wear these things again. He thought once he resigned from the UNSC he wouldn't need them again. But duty calls and he grabbed the jumpsuit and started stripping. Nira went in the room and grabbed her jumpsuit and started stripping as well.

"I can't believe it still fits Me." said Nira she placed her hoof inside the jumpsuit.

"Me as well." said Zen as he placed his arms in the appropriate place. After doing so he pressed a button on the side and the suit immediately melted itself to his skin. It felt like he was wearing a wet suit. He grabbed the thigh sections of his armor and clasping them into place.

He grabbed the chest section and donned it on himself. It was amazing that even though he hadn't been wearing his armor anymore it still fit him like a glove… or at least the glove parts do. He grabbed his helmet at the top but didn't wear it yet. He walked out of the room but not before slapping Nira's butt which in turn made her whimper in surprise. Zen smiled at her mischievously.

"I'll get you for that later." said Nira as she clasped her armor's chest section.

"I'll wait for you downstairs." said Zen as he stepped out.

He went downstairs to find Z'jo and Zide in their armor lounging at the living room. Jess and Viper were turning the computer off.

"What am I going to do with you 2?" asked Zen to the 2.

"Don't worry about us Zen, we can still help even if we don't fight." said Jess.

"How?" asked Zen.

"Easy. We'll be technical support." said Viper.

"As in?" asked Zen.

"As in like an AI, we aren't Cortana but we can be one if you give us a laptop and an internet connection." said Viper.

"Great then." said Zen and he turned around.

"Is you armor still in working condition?" he asked to Z'jo.

"Yep, the shields are still working." answered Z'jo.

"Wow, I can't believe I forgot how comfortable these things are." said Stahn as he came around the corner.

"You said it." said Zide.

"Are all of you ready?" asked Nira as she went down the stairs.

"Yup." said Jess.

"Let's go then. I'll drive." said Zen. He went to the garage door while donning his helmet on. It hissed as it sealed itself and pressurized. A bar came on his upper right showing that his shields were charging up. And a new feature that he installed on his free time was a gauge that checked his health status.

It showed a number of 100 that will decrease as he takes damage. Kinda like a health meter. All 7 of them boarded the vehicle and they drove off towards HQ. A few minutes of driving and then they turned around the corner of the street and parked the car at the HQ parking lot. It would seem that the personnel were expecting them since they were allowed in with no question.

They hopped of the car and made their way towards the main entrance outside the street. As they passed people, they were given curious glances because of their appearance. Standing in front of the entrance was Thel, N'kev, Xue and Olut who were waiting for them.

Zen raised an eyebrow as he was surprised by Xue and Olut's reaction to their group. He realized that maybe they already went to the exhibit at the museum and realized who these 5 people were standing in front of them. Thel nodded to them in acknowledgement and Zen nodded back. Thel turned around and headed inside the HQ. They all followed after him.

Olut couldn't help but gawk at the people in front of him. It was like he was seeing the wax figures back at the museum come to life. He managed to actually see the figures of the 5 All Stars back at the museum and he never thought he'd meet them in real life.

He couldn't help but stare at the customize armor of the Sangheili in front of him named Z'jo 'Evanam. He wore a customized armor that was made for him when he joined the UNSC. At his armor were bold letters that said 'UNSC'. He couldn't belive he was at the presence of the very same people that help save them from the lies of the prophets.

He couldn't help but wonder who those 2 humans that were following them. They didn't seem like people that could fight let alone look soldier material. Nevertheless they may be very important individuals that were allowed in the presence of the 5. As they walked down the halls headed to the meeting room. Zen noticed that most of the people that they passed were giving them curious looks.

They eventually made it to the meeting room where Rtas and Azu were waiting for them. The table now had extra chairs with them to accompany the amount of people there. Rtas had already explained who Zen was to Azu so he wasn't actually surprised by seeing them.

"Glad you could make It." said Rtas.

"Nah, we're happy to lend a hand." replied Zen.

"Jess and V are going to be helping us in this particular mission. They'll help us track down the location of the Loyalists once they get to the 'Vadum state." said Nira.

"Much appreciated." replied Rtas.

"I think its time you introduce to us to your friends N'kev." said Zide. N'kev in turn looked at Thel who nodded. It was time to tell them everything.

"Guys do you remember that I mentioned that I had 4 uncles?" N'kev asked.

"Yeah you did." answered Xue.

"Well I would like you to meet them. That is my Uncle Z'jo 'Evanam." he pointed to Z'jo.

"That is my Uncle Zide 'Evanam." he pointed to Zide. "That is Uncle Stahn Zeban, a family friend." he pointed to Stahn. "That is Uncle Viperwatcher, another family friend." he pointed to Viper.

"That's my sister Jess." he pointed to Jess.

"This is my mother and father." he pointed to Zen and Nira.

"And that behind you is my grandfather." he said smiling to them.

Xue and Olut slowly turned around to look at who he pointed too. Thel removed his helmet and said to the two,

"Nice to meet you." he said grinning to them.

Xue and Olut's mouth were agape. _Nothing_ made sense. You could say that there minds were _overwhelmed_ by the sudden rush information revealed to them; Too overwhelmed in fact that Xue actually fainted when she saw Thel's face.

"Overkill, Thel, overkill." said Zen as N'kev caught Xue just in time before she fell to the floor.

"You think?" asked Thel curiously. Olut on the other hand was hyperventilating as he pieced together the information.

"His… Your… But… His… The…" he stammered as he hyperventilated.

"Calm down. Breathe in… Breathe out… Take a seat." instructed Azu. Olut followed his orders as he tried to calm down.

"N'kev, take Xue to the medical bay to get her treated for shock." said Z'jo.

"Ok." followed N'kev as he scooped up Xue in her arms and walked out.

"So I was right! You did look familiar." said Olut as he finally calmed down to Thel.

"Yes you were. You were the only person that managed to recognize by face and matched it to the face under the helmet." said Thel. Olut just smiled as he was praised.

"So… Is it true that you are a Creator?" asked Olut to Zen. Zen removed his helmet, it hissed as it depressurized, to allow himself some breathing room.

"Yeah its true, wanna see?" he asked as he placed his helmet at the table.

"Yes please!" said Olut his eyes the size widening in excitement.

"Ok…Hmmm… What should I make?" Zen asked himself.

"Aha! I think I'll make…" he said as he a bright flash engulfed his palm. Olut shielded his eyes and was surprised to an energy sword handle in his hand.

"There we go." he said as he handed the energy sword to Olut. He took it and examined it carefully.

"Go ahead, turn it on." said Zen. Olut nodded and he turned it on. He swung it around carefully looking amazed.

"Now, now, let's put that away. Olut get suited up and report back here." ordered Rtas.

"Yes sir!" he said as he placed the energy sword on the table and left.

"Kids." mumbled Nira as he left. Thel laughed.

"Time to get you 7 up to speed." said Rtas as he began briefing them.

* * * * *

N'kev laid Xue on one of the medical bay's bed and watched her rest. She looked at piece and calm. He was lucky to have the medical bay alone since he wasn't all too sure how to explain himself as he stared at Xue resting on the bed. He sighed as his head began to be filled with images of her again. He was still in a dilemma since he still didn't know how to say the 3 magic words to her. He found it hard since his throat would go dry whenever he felt like it was time to say it.

He placed a hand on her cheek and stroked it gently,

"I love you, Xue…" he sighed. It was all too easy to say it to her when she's asleep.

"Damn, how am I going to say this in front of her?" he asked himself. He withdrew his hand and placed it under his chin and began to think. Seconds later Xue slowly opened her eyes and groaned. She found herself staring at N'kev who was staring back at her.

"What happen?" she asked weakly.

"You fainted." said N'kev smiling at her.

"Oh… So that was your secret eh?" she asked.

"Yup, that was _one_ of the secrets I had been keeping." he answered.

"You mean there's more?" she asked.

"_Damn_, I shouldn't have said that." he said scolding himself for his complete idiocy. Xue giggled.

"You look cute when you're like that." said Xue. N'kev looked at her and then leaned in close so that he was inches away from her.

"Really, well then thanks." said N'kev as he accepted the compliment. He heard the door slid open; he turned his head, and a personnel step in. He didn't take notice of the two of them as he casually went the other way, away from the bed where Xue and N'kev were.

N'kev sighed when all of a sudden a set of warm mandibles found their way to his right cheek, sucking it quickly in a small kiss. A quiet squeak escaped his throat; he slowly faced the one that kissed him. Xue's orange eyes were large as she faced N'kev.

"I wasn't asleep." she said to him smiling slyly. It took a moment for him to realize what she meant but when he did he blinked and he looked at her with his eyes astonished.

"You…You…Heard…" stammered N'kev as he asked her.

"Yes I did." said Xue.

"You di…" N'kev choked as Xue pressed her mandibles to the end of his mouth Xue gently cupped N'kev's chin in her hand and continued to kiss him deeply.

Then she pulled away.

They looked deeply into one another's eye for a long moment.

Then N'kev blinked and Xue nuzzled him and said,

"I love you too, N'kev."

* * *

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	16. Chapter Deja Vu

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 16 Déjà vu?

N'kev couldn't believe what he was hearing. He was dumbstruck as he realized that both of them just confessed there love for one another. Xue nuzzled him and pulled away. She swung herself at the side of the bed and stood up. N'kev shook himself back to reality and stood next to her.

"C'mon we need to go." said Xue to him smiling.

"Ok." answered N'kev and the 2 of them made their way back to the meeting room.

* * * * *

"So when are we leaving?" asked Zen. The briefing about their mission had just finished with Rtas sitting down. Along the briefing time, Azu introduced who he was.

"We will leave before nightfall. It is about 1 hour from now." answered Thel.

"Hey V, any luck on figuring out where they could be?" asked Zide.

"Not yet… but I'm getting there." answered Viper as he continued typing on his laptop that Zen had created for him. Jess was beside him giving occasional help since she knew quite a bit of hacking and tracking with computers.

"I hope this mission doesn't end badly." said Z'jo.

"Yeah I hope we don't get casualties." added Nira.

"We can only hope." said Azu.

* * * * *

The Sangheilis and humans eventually went to the 'Vadum state. The 'Vadum state was actually like a rural countryside. It was actually a peaceful town where almost everyone knew each other. It had a majestic mountain that was at the side, that Rtas said its name was 'Vadum Mt.'; The 'Vadum state had a limited police force which would explain why the loyalists chose the place.

Along the journey there N'kev couldn't help but feel a slight Déjà vu as they passed by the streets heading to the police station. He felt like he'd seen the place but couldn't figure out how; especially when he saw the mountain. Seeing it gave him the hibby-jibbies. They eventually found the police station and went there.

"Glad you could make it, commander." said the head deputy chief.

"Just doing our job; is there a place where we could set up as our headquarters?" asked Rtas.

"Right this way please." directed the chief.

Eventually they made up HQ in one of the biggest meeting rooms the HQ had. The members separated along the while they were gathering information on the whereabouts of the Loyalist. Jess and V were working like madmen and women in front of the computer typing feverishly.

Zen, Nira, Zide, Z'jo and Stahn went out to do a little sight seeing. Thel, Xue, Olut and Azu went to the target range at the building to practice for the upcoming fight.

"I'm going to do some…_things._ Contact me as soon as you find out anything." said Rtas as he walked up to the door.

"Sure thing." answered Viper.

"Sir, can I come with you?" asked N'kev. He felt stupid asking the question but he didn't want to be left at the meeting room doing nothing. He also felt dumb asking the question since it may involve something private.

Rtas looked at him for a moment then said, "Sure why not." He nodded and followed after him.

They went outside the police headquarters, and began walking in the sidewalk.

"Sir," asked N'kev but he was cut off by Rtas.

"Call me Rtas." said Rtas. N'kev was surprised by the sudden suggestion but nevertheless nodded.

"Si, I mean Rtas, where are we going exactly?" he asked curiously. Rtas looked at him and said,

"You're awfully curios for your age. We're going to visit a very special place." answered Rtas. N'kev just smiled at him.

As they continued down the street a bus stopped at a nearby bus stop in front of them and a familiar Sangheili stepped out.

"Cloid?" asked N'kev as he recognized the Sangheili.

"N'kev, what a surprise… Commander." Cloid immediately snapped a salute as he recognized the Spec Ops Commander standing next to N'kev.

"What brings you to the 'Vadum state?" asked Rtas.

"Oh, I'm here for some important SMEPS business." answered Cloid. "How about you?" he asked.

"We're because we had to deal with some Loyalist problem." answered Rtas.

"So, I've heard… Anyways, nice meeting you; good bye." said Cloid.

"Good bye!" said N'kev as he saw Cloid walking away. Then the 2 proceeded on.

* * * * *

Cloid had finally found the time to do some researching and investigating. He couldn't continue his investigation on the so called _faker_ since he was to busy examining the examinees back at SMEPS.

But now that he has, he had traveled to the 'Vadum state, to continue his investigation about the missing profile on the said _faker_. He went down the streets carrying his briefcase, holding important documents that involved the _faker_.

After a few moments of walking he ended up on the place he needed to be, the City Records. The City Records is a building that houses all files of people that lived in a particular state, or in this matter it housed the files of the people that lived in the 'Vadum state. He walked in the front entrance hoping to find the specific file that could finish his investigation.

* * * * *

Rtas and N'kev went down the streets of the 'Vadum State. They had engaged in normal conversation along the while and Rtas found himself making the young Sangheili as a friend. He didn't know why but he found it easy to talk with the Sangheili. This is a rare thing since he rarely finds people easy to talk to.

"Really Rtas?" asked N'kev. They had just been talking about a story that Rtas had told him.

"Yes its true." answered Rtas.

The 2 continued walking down the streets when all of a sudden N'kev stopped. He suddenly saw a man carrying something cross the street; he came from the mountain at their right side. It was a Sangheili, but for some reason his features was obscured. The figure crossed the street then suddenly dissipated.

"Is something N'kev?" asked Rtas. N'kev shook his head,

"Its nothing." he said. Technically it wasn't _nothing_, it was something. He felt like he had one of those Déjà vu episodes again. He disregarded it and they continued to move on. A few seconds later they stopped in front of a house.

"This is my house." announced Rtas.

"Wow." said N'kev looking around.

The house wasn't that elegant or simple. It was a 2 story house that featured a garden at the back. It had a large tree at the side which gave a shadow down at the house.

"I still live here actually, but when I'm off duty of course." said Rtas. N'kev nodded.

They walked through the patio and approached the house. They didn't approach the front door though; instead they went to the side, following a series of steps going to the garden out at the back. The garden was quite beautiful. Rtas said he had hired a gardener to keep it maintained to maintain its beauty.

Maintain its beauty indeed. The garden had different types of flowers that N'kev did not know what to call. Instead he just compared them to human type flowers since it looked a lot like it. There was one that look liked a rose, another sampaguita and one at the side that looked liked Bougainvilleas.

It was quite nice to look at. You could say it was a slice of paradise. But Rtas seemed to have stiffened and tensed up as they traversed down the garden. N'kev saw at the end what it was that was making Rtas liked that and he felt the same way as well.

At one side of the garden, surrounded by flowers, was a tombstone. It was rock slab that jutted out from the ground. In front of it was a barren patch of dirt where no grass grew. N'kev examined the tombstone but couldn't make out the writing. It was old and withered.

There was only a partial word he could distinguish it was, ''Vadum'. So they were visiting a grave of a long lost loved one to Rtas. N'kev suddenly felt grief as he realized it. Rtas knelt in front of the grave and was silent. N'kev was about to ask who owns the grave but felt that it was rude to do so.

"Do you know who this grave belongs to?" asked Rtas all of a sudden breaking the silence.

"No." was all N'kev could say.

"This… Belonged to my son." he said. N'kev was completely surprised by the statement. Never had he known throughout his life that the Spec Ops Commander, Rtas 'Vadum had a son.

"He died, way before the great schism." said Rtas.

"How old was he?" asked N'kev.

"About 5 years old to be exact." said Rtas. He stood up and stood next to N'kev.

"Do you know, that he reminds me of you." said Rtas. N'kev looked at him surprise.

"Really?" he asked.

"Yes." said Rtas. N'kev nodded.

Then N'kev's phone rang. He was given one which was created by Zen earlier, before they dispersed into their own groups.

"N'kev here." he said answering his phone. He immediately changed his expression from calm to surprise after hearing what was said at the other side.

"We're on our way." he said and he closed and stored the phone again.

"What was it about?" asked Rtas.

"Jess and Viper said they had figured out where the Loyalists are." he answered.

"Well let's go then." said Rtas and the 2 left the garden and headed back to the police headquarters.

* * * * *

Cloid stepped into the City Records. He walked towards the reception desk and said,

"I am an SMEPS personnel." he said showing his ID. The receptionist looked surprised.

"What brings you here, sir?" asked the receptionist.

"I'm here to conduct an investigation. Would you mind if I look over some files on some specific people?" he asked.

"Not at all; please do note that reproduction of said files is not allowed and it is punishable by law. Please use the terminal over there." he pointed to a terminal behind the reception desk. Cloid nodded.

He went behind the desk and sat down on the chair in front of the terminal. He placed his briefcase at the side and cracked his knuckles. He was about to read the file that will become a complete shocker.

* * *

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	17. Chapter The Last Stand

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 17 The Last Stand

N'kev and Rtas ran back to the HQ to the news of the Loyalists being found. They ran up the entrance and entered the building. They entered the meeting room to find almost everyone there. Z'jo, Zide, Zen, Azu, Nira, Stahn, Xue, Olut, Karif, Jess and Viper looked up as the 2 entered the room.

"Good you guys are here." said Viper.

"You said you had found out where they were?" asked N'kev.

"Yes I have." answered Viper. Then he immediately briefed hem about what they had uncovered from their searching and tracking.

"From what we have uncovered we have tracked their location to an abandon warehouse at the outskirts of town." said Jess.

"How many are they exactly?" asked Karif.

"Approximately 100 to be since we managed to do a head count." answered Viper.

"Let's get down to business then." said Rtas.

* * * * *

The team went down to their vehicles that were parked at the parking lot of the police station. They had brought their own weapons that would help them win this last stand. They took out, carbines, sniper rifles, shotguns, energy swords, the whole she-bang.

"Lock and load." said Zen as he checked his shotgun for some ammo. After all of them got heated up, they boarded their vehicles to head to the abandoned warehouse. The plan was entirely simple and was easy to understand. It was to search and destroy. But if the enemy chooses to give up or surrender they will capture them.

They drove onto the night heading into the darkness. They parked their cars a few feet away from the said abandoned warehouse and closed in on them on foot. Zen created himself some night vision binoculars and looked into them. He could see some Loyalists walking around the perimeter, obviously doing some patrols. He gave them some hand signals and everyone closed in on the perimeter.

"When I give the signal, we go in gun's blazing." said Zen over the radio.

"Roger." said almost everyone agreeing with him. He allowed himself into take one last look over the binoculars and gave the signal. Stahn and saw it and aimed his sniper rifle. A few seconds later the first shot was fired and one of the guards went down.

* * * * *

Cloid sat in front of the chair at the City Records as he examined the files that were stored there. He clicked the terminal and a few moments later a series of files popped in front of him.

He clicked the name that matched the file that he saw back at his home PC. He opened and was surprised to see what he saw. After he read it he couldn't stop himself from reading it again as he tried to make sense of what he saw.

"By the Rings… Then that means that injury…" he said to himself. He quickly opened his briefcase and looked at the files. He examined it carefully and saw what he was looking for.

"Wow, then that must mean…" he said and he quickly stood up. He rushed out of his room, bringing his briefcase with him.

"Sir, where are you going?" asked the receptionist.

"To the hospital!" he yelled as he ran outside.

* * * * *

The fighting was literally intense. It was like being back in the war. Plasma grenades flew everywhere and exploded. Gunshots and plasma shots were traded between both parties. N'kev looked around at his surroundings, Azu ,Z'jo and Zide were pinned down at the side as they received heavy gunfire. Nira and Zen were fighting alongside, Zen lobbing a plasma grenade that stick to the head of a Loyalist.

Olut, Xue and Stahn were sniping at the side of the building. Thel, Karif and Rtas were fighting a couple of Loyalists in a deadly dance of energy swords. N'kev lighted his energy sword and rushed in. He quickly dodged to the right as a plasma grenade nearly landed on him.

He easily finished the one that threw the grenade at him with a fatal stab. But to his horror his shields suddenly went down as a Loyalist was shooting him with a carbine. But before the Sangheili could fire the fatal shot, its head exploded as it was shot by Xue with her sniper rifle.

Intense firefights erupted but it was pretty much obvious who was winning. They were winning and the Loyalist were clearly loosing. As it was obvious this was their Last Stand. Zen jumped to his left as he received a near fatal blow of an energy sword. He quickly shot the guy down with his shotgun. He couldn't help but say to Nira,

"Just like old times!" Nira just smiled at him.

Azu ducked as a hail of plasma was fired at him. With his carbine he quickly aimed for headshots and he got them. But to his dismay the Loyalists had shields which managed to absorb the shots. He quickly primed himself a plasma grenade and lobbed it towards the Loyalists. It landed, sticking itself on the head. The Loyalist exploded into nothing as the grenade detonated.

They slowly moved decimated all the forces of the Loyalist. They seemed to be a no end to them coming out of the building but they knew they had to be running out of me.

N'kev cut down a Loyalist that was about to shoot him with a plasma rifle. His armor was splattered with blood as he did so. He just wiped them off meekly. He turned around and ducked just in time as plasma shot passed him. He rushed toward the guy and killed him as well.

He turned around to see a Sangheili wearing a different armor stepped out of the warehouse. He was wearing a different colored one that was clearly unique amongst the group. It was obvious he was the leader. He tried to run to the leader to get him but he was sidetracked as a loyalist nearly took his shields down by a carbine.

Gressi checked the weapon he had. It was the flood weapon that could easily kill anyone. He checked and it showed that it was still full with ammo. He quickly looked around for a possible target. He saw the Arbiter and was about to take the shot when he noticed the Spec Ops Commander. Surely the Spec Ops Commander was a much more important individual nowadays since the Arbiter isn't really a title now. He aimed his pistol at him and rested his finger at the trigger. He couldn't take a clear shot since the Sangheili was moving around.

N'kev killed down the Sangheili that sidetracked him. He quickly looked around and saw that the leader was aiming a weird looking pistol at Rtas. He quickly remembered that the Loyalists had managed to develop that could easily kill someone. He didn't know what he was thinking but he immediately rushed towards Rtas.

Gressi took aim at his moving target. Once he got his shot he took it. And he did. The moment Rtas stopped moving for a moment he fired the bullet.

Everything seemed to have gone into slow motion again. N'kev heard the gunshot and made himself run towards faster than ever. The bullet was traveling in the air, unstoppable and was aiming for a clear shot at its target. N'kev was a few feet away from Rtas when he jumped at him. His hands made contact to his back and he managed to push him out of the way of the bullet… but instead he was the one that got shot.

He didn't know how, but the bullet managed to get pass his armor shields and hit him in the chest area. His body laid flat on the floor; he started to spasm as the bullet did its thing. His vision began to fade and the prospect of dying came to his mind. A few moments later he lost consciousness.

Zen who managed to see the whole thing quickly got filled with rage. He created himself a sniper rifle and aimed the barrel down at the leader. A few seconds later the head of Gressi exploded as a round of a sniper rifle hit it; And so the leader of the Loyalists Gressi 'Giva had passed away.

Zen dropped the gun he fired and ran towards his son. He didn't care if he'll get shot along the way, he just wanted to see if he's son was still alive. He saw him get hit and lay flat on the floor. He wished himself that he wasn't dead.

Rtas who was about to finish off the Loyalist that attacked him was surprised as the Sangheili raised his hands in a form of surrender. They were all surprised as the Loyalist gave up their fights when they saw that their leader had been killed. He then realized what had just transpired. He remembered being pushed by someone and he turned around.

He saw N'kev lying on the ground, his body quivering unnaturally. He saw Zen lying next to him checking if he was still alive. Zen looked up and said to Rtas,

"He took a bullet for you." Rtas was suddenly shocked. He never once experienced someone taking a bullet for him let alone sacrificing themselves just to keep him alive. He senses kicked in and he felt great pity for N'kev and said,

"We need to get him medical attention right now!" he yelled. Zen nodded and scooped N'kev up. Maybe it was the suit, or the adrenaline but he actually managed to _carry_ a full grown Sangheili. He didn't dwell on it for now as he wanted to save his son's life.

Thel who just realized what happen said to Karif, "You're in charge of clean up duty." Karif looked somewhat annoyed but nevertheless replied, "Yes sir." He turned to Squad B and said,

"All right boys, we're on clean up duty."

* * * * *

A few moments later, Zen, Thel, Rtas, Z'jo, Zide, Xue, Olut, Nira and Stahn were standing outside the emergency room to where N'kev's operation was being held.

"I can't believe he took a bullet for Me." said Rtas. Z'jo placed a hand on his shoulder,

"Don't beat yourself up for it. It wasn't your fault he got shot." Rtas just nodded.

Then the sound of running footsteps made all of them look up. Viper and Jess was running up to them.

"We just heard what just happen. Is he alright?" asked Viper. No one answered his question and he understood that N'kev was on the balance of life or death.

"I hope my brother lives." said Jess as tears slowly went up her eyes. Nira just hugged her.

"It's ok. He's going to live, I know he will." but deep down, Nira wasn't quite sure with her own answer.

They all looked up as the light above the emergency room faded and it only meant one thing, the surgery was over.

A Sangheili in a surgeon's outfit stepped out and he stood in front of them.

"Is he going to be alright?" asked Thel.

"Well…" said the surgeon, he removed his mask to allow himself to talk easier.

"His stable… for_ now_." said the surgeon darkly.

"What?" asked Olut.

"We've managed to get the bullet out of him. His body seemed to be already healing when we did the procedure." said the surgeon.

_It must be because he has Creator Powers_ thought Zen.

"But the problem now is, he has lost _too_ _much_ blood. We have managed to stabilize his body but if he doesn't receive a blood transfusion right now or in less than 1 hour he'll die." said the surgeon.

"Can't you find a donor?" asked Stahn.

"We could but we don't have enough time to look for one. Does he have any living relatives, parents or siblings?" asked the surgeon.

"Why, how would that help?" asked Viper.

"Well you see, Sangheili blood behaves differently than human blood. Sure we follow the laws that bound blood transfusion such as the same law you humans follow. Such as the law that AB can accept A, B or O blood transfusions but cannot donate to an O type individual. But when the said Sangheili accepts blood from a consanguine individual, his body will accept it with no problem whatsoever. Its one the rare differences between humans and Sangheili." explained the surgeon.

"But the problem is, he doesn't _have_ any living relatives_ or_ parents. His parents died back a long time ago." said Z'jo.

"Not quite." said a voice from behind them. All of them turned around and Xue recognized it as Cloid.

"Cloid? What are you doing here?" she asked.

"I'm here to tell you something." he said approaching them.

"What is it you want to tell us?" asked Zide.

"Well…" he said then he turned to Rtas.

"Did you know that N'kev .... Is your son?" asked Cloid.  


* * *

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	18. Chapter It all falls together

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

**Author's Notes: I will now reveal to you the hints that I have written all over the duration of this fan fiction that supports the fact that N'kev is the son of Rtas.  
**

* * *

Chapter 18 It all falls together

"What?" asked Rtas completely surprised and was shocked by what Cloid said.

"Yes, you heard me correct. He is your son." said Cloid looking at him.

"That's not possible. My son is _dead_." said Rtas feverishly.

"No he isn't. How did your son die _exactly_?" asked Cloid.

"Well…" began Rtas. He hurt badly for him to remember how his son died. But he was asked the question and he had to answer it.

"He fell off a cliff…" said Rtas darkly.

"Fell off a cliff? Are you sure?" asked Zen.

"Yes. I'm very sure." answered Rtas. Zen and Thel looked at one another.

"That would explain the dreams he's been having." said Zen.

"What?" almost all of them asked.

"You see he's been having these dreams lately of 2 people up in a cliff. The dreams cuts of where the _son_ falls of the cliff and presumably dies." answered Thel.

"By far we had only assumed it was his…_powers_…that was causing It." answered Zen.

"You mean to tell me, that N'kev inherited _your_ powers?" asked Olut.

"In a blunt way of speaking, yes." answered Zen. Xue immediately understood that was the_ other _secret N'kev was talking about back at the clinic at HQ.  
"It would also explain why he was so good at the energy sword." said Z'jo.

"Yeah, I remember him telling us that…" said Zide.

*****FLASHBACK*** (Author's Note: Hint #1)  
**

_ Z'jo and Zide were talking to N'kev_

_ "Is it true? Did you really beat Rtas 'Vadum?" asked Z'jo._

_ "Yes. It's true." N'kev answered. Z'jo's eyes widened._

_ "See it was true!" he said turning to his brother._

_ "You must be really good with the energy sword then." asked Zide._

_ "A little." said N'kev humbly. He wasn't really good at the energy sword. He could actually call that victory just a lucky victory._

_ "You're like an 'energy sword prodigy'." said Z'jo._

_ "I wouldn't say I'm a prodigy. My father didn't train me in the arts; he actually never handled the weapon since he wasn't a soldier." said N'kev._

_ "Hmm…" was only Z'jo's response. _

*****END OF FLASHBACK*****

"He was a prodigy but his _father_ wasn't even a soldier. That's not possible." said Nira.

"True, true; but how can you prove to me that he is truly my son?" asked Rtas, still unconvinced by the revelation in front of him.

"I can prove that to you." said Cloid.

"Well you see, in SMEPS we take blood samples from our examinees. When I cross referenced his blood to the databases there was no match." said Cloid.

"None in the Azen state that is…" added Cloid; everyone was shocked at hearing this.

"So that is why I'm here at the 'Vadum state because back at the SMEPS, I found something quite intriguing in N'kev's profile. We suspected that he was a faker. Why? Because we found out that…"

*****FLASHBACK*** (Author's Notes: Hint #2)  
This time I can now reveal to you that the 'Faker' was none other than N'kev. **

_"Hey, Kev, check this out." Kev turned on his seat and approached him._

_ "What is it, Cloid?" asked Kev._

_ "This." said Cloid directing to the monitor in front of him. It displayed full information about __**N'kev 'Xem**__._

_ "Well, there seems to be nothing wrong with his profile." said Kev. Cloid snorted,_

_ "That's the problem. I did a background check on this guy, and came up with nothing about his childhood; but his profile is legitimate enough to pass identity checking." said Cloid,_

_ "What do you mean 'nothing about his childhood'?" Kev asked curiously._

_ "I mean, there's nothing. Nothing about his childhood; the only thing that the database has in storage is from the guy's history starting when he was about 5 years old."_

_ "That's…Odd." said Kev._

*****END OF FLASHBACK***  
**

"So I had to do some research. Eventually I cross checked his blood and came up with nothing at the Azen State. But…It matched a DNA profile at the 'Vadum State." said Cloid.

*****FLASHBACK*** (Author's Note: Hint #3)  
**

_ NO MATCH FOUND_

_ "What the heck?" he asked surprise. He tried it again and the same results. It would seem that N'kev has no known data of his blood on any databases they had. But he looked at the alternate searches the computer found. The computer managed to find a match but it was from the 'Vadum so he couldn't actually access the file directly from his computer. He had to make a visit to that state the next morning to check the said file._

*****END OF FLASHBACK*****

"Eventually I had found the time to go to the 'Vadum State. You saw me earlier the day right?" asked Cloid. Rtas nodded, since it was true he did see Cloid earlier the day.

"I was going to head down to the City Records to find the said profile. When I saw it I was completely shocked…"

*****FLASHBACK*** (Author's Note: Hint #4)  
**

_Cloid sat in front of the chair at the City Records as he examined the files that were stored there. He clicked the terminal and a few moments later a series of files popped in front of him. _

_ He clicked the name that matched the file that he saw back at his home PC. He opened and was surprised to see what he saw. After he read it he couldn't stop himself from reading it again as he tried to make sense of what he saw. _

*****END OF FLASHBACK*****

"The profile was right. The name of the profile was N'kev 'Vadum. At the end it said 'Deceased' at the age of 5 years old. Cause of Death said he fell of a cliff that was announced by the father. But authorities report that there was _no body found_, but eventually they just marked him _dead_." said Cloid.

"How could you explain to us, why he didn't know about his heritage?" asked Azu.

"Ah… I figured that out also. See when I gave him the physical examination back at SMEPS I found an odd injury…

*****FLASHBACK*** (Author's Note: Hint #5)  
**

_"Ok." said Cloid turning around from his chair. He was holding some papers that held the results of N'kev's test. He clicked his mandibles as he scanned through them._

_ "Your head's ok." said Cloid checking one of the papers. He turned to the next one and read it._

_ "Heart's fine." N'kev nodded_

_ "No broken bones." he continued then he clicked his mandibles. N'kev looked at him curiously._

_ "Is their something wrong with me?" he asked._

_**"Nothing really, it says here you suffered from a concussion. But don't worry its fine now." **__N'kev exhaled. He was glad it was nothing serious, just a simple concussion on the head nothing to worry about._

_ "Aside from that nothing's wrong with you; and I'm happy to say you're not infertile." said Cloid looking up from his papers and smiling at N'kev. N'kev just smiled weakly back at him, not expecting that comment from him._

*****END OF FLASHBACK*****

"And so I thought what if that head injury wasn't a normal head injury." said Cloid.

*****FLASHBACK***(Author's Note: Hint #6)  
**

_"By the Rings… Then that means that injury…" he said to himself. He quickly opened his briefcase and looked at the files. He examined it carefully and saw what he was looking for._

_ "Wow, then that must mean…" he said and he quickly stood up. He rushed out of his room, bringing his briefcase with him. _

_ "Sir, where are you going?" asked the receptionist._

_ "To the hospital!" he yelled as he ran outside._

*****END OF FLASHBACK*****

"I rushed to the hospital because I had a theory. It seemed far fetched but it was worth a shot. When I eventually reached the hospital I asked the staff there if I could see the list of patients who were at the hospital the day he fell off the cliff. What I saw proved my theory. A young boy about the age of 5 years old was rushed to the hospital because of severe head injury, he was sent in by Jino 'Xem." said Cloid.

"N'kev's father…" said Jess.

"His step father to be exact; at the end of the file said that the boy, due to the severe head injury, had developed severe amnesia. The only thing he could remember was his first name. Jino, feeling sorry for the kid, adopted him and the next is, well lets say, history." finished Cloid.

"His injury would explain why he had known so little about his childhood." mumbled Zide.

Rtas couldn't believe what he was hearing. N'kev was actually his long lost, thought to be, dead son. How could he be so stupid to not bother trying to look for a body; he felt like he was going to cry but immediately stop himself. It was hard for him to believe that his son was right in front of him the whole time and he just didn't know it.

Xue on the other hand was also completely taken aback. Everything Cloid explained made complete sense. But there was one revelation that she had just understood. She never mentioned to N'kev that the Sangheili that was her best friend that died shared the same first name with him.

"So… Are we going to save your son or not?" asked Cloid. It took a moment for Rtas to regain his composure.

"Yes lets." said Rtas. Then he turned to the surgeon,

"I'm his father and I will give my blood to him." he said. The surgeon nodded and said,

"Follow me please." said the surgeon and Rtas and him went to the emergency room.

"You know it makes sense." said Thel.

"Everything made sense." said Zen.

"No, I'm talking more specific about N'kev beating Rtas." said Thel.

"What made sense about that?" asked Stahn.

"It made sense because only N'kev had managed to beat Rtas. He truly is his son." said Thel.

After that everyone was quiet, enveloped in their own thoughts.

* * *

**Author's Notes: Those hints mentioned above would have only made sense if you were to combined them all together. By themselves they mean nothing, but combined together, they form the answer.**

**

* * *

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	19. Chapter Epilogue

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Halo universe, which is the property of Bungie Studios.  
However, original characters belong to me.**

Note: To people who don't like the story, PLEASE DO NOT READ THE FAN FIC, JUST LEAVE.

NOTE: As if its not that obvious I'm still gonna say it, This story is not following the  
the original canon of the Halo series.

* * *

Chapter 19 Epilogue

Xue was lying beside N'kev's bed. She was finally allowed to see him after there operation. She stared at N'kev resting body. He was lying on the bed; his armor was at the side. His body was covered bandages to cover the cuts and bruises. She couldn't help but be filled with worry when she thought N'kev was going to die.

She had known for a while that she was attracted to N'kev _physically_. It was obvious because that triggered her crush on him in the first place. Now she suspected that attraction was no longer just physical, but something deeper. She thought that now she was really _in love_ with N'kev. She felt strongly connected to him that if he were to die she didn't know what she would do.

She stroked the side of his face which prompted him to groan. He slowly opened his eyes and was slightly dazed by the sudden light. He waited until his eyes could focus and he sat up wincing slightly. He looked around and saw Xue was staring at him.

"The doctor said you'll be fine." said Xue.

"Good to hear." said N'kev.

Then the door opened and Rtas and Zen walked in.

"Oh, you're awake." said Rtas.

"Yes I am commander." said N'kev giving him a salute but wincing as his hand hurt.

"At ease, you don't need to salute Me." said Rtas.

"Listen N'kev, we have to tell you something." said Zen.

"What is it?" he asked curiously.

"Well…" said Zen, He gulped. Then he began relaying what they had uncovered.

N'kev was in shock as he heard what was being told to him. His mandibles were left agape as it was explained to him what his two dreams meant. It all fell into place along with other evidences that he was the long lost son of Rtas. As he realized this, the grave back at Rtas's house must had the name inscribed to it, N'kev 'Vadum but it was withered away.

He gulped as he looked at Rtas. Rtas smiled at him and gave him a hug. He blushed anew as he was hugged by his commanding officer or wait… scratch that his real father. For him he, he couldn't believe that his real father was alive. It was a funny fact that now he had two fathers; one biological and one by law. N'kev was also surprised that _he_ was the best friend Xue had back when she was still a child, the one that died.

"Well now that's explained. We'll leave you two alone now." said Zen smirking at him.

Then the 2 men left the room leaving, N'kev and Xue alone.

"So…Xue I want to tell you something." said N'kev to her.

By now, Xue had edged up right next to him and slipped an arm over his shoulders. It felt nice for him to feel Xue's warm arm around his. She looked at him and asked,

"What is it?"

N'kev's mind was racing. It was really now the time to tell her that he wanted to be more than friends or best friends. It was obvious that they had gotten past that point but he needed to be sure if she would accept him.

"I find myself…Unable to imagine life without you, Xue," he said, tears in his eyes. "I…Find myself, wanting to be more than…What we are now. More then friends or best friends but…." N'kev froze up. He couldn't say what he wanted to say to her for fear of rejection.

"Lovers?" she asked voice dreamy. N'kev turned purple and nodded meekly.

"Well then it's about time." said Xue.

As N'kev heard what she had just said she pulled him close to her body to a bear hug. She laid her head on his shoulder and whispered,

"I want nobody but you."

The move caught N'kev by complete surprise and he didn't know how to react to this. "Wha…What?" he sputtered out.

She let go and said to him, "N'kev I've been observing you closely. More than you know."

"What do you mean?" asked N'kev.

"I've noticed that whenever I'm near you or touch you in a manner, your body seems to get _too relaxed_." she answered. It took him a moment to understand what she was saying and then turned purple.

"H-how long have you noticed it on me?" he asked.

"Long enough, to know that you can't keep hiding _it_ forever from me; and you're having one _right now_." said Xue.

N'kev giggled at that, blushing anew. "I guess I am. But…What now? I have…No idea what to do…."

In response, Xue nuzzled his neck, N'kev nearly fainting from how wonderful that felt.

"Don't worry, we can always take it slow." Then she nuzzled him again.

"I-I would like that…Very much so…." responded N'kev and returned the gesture.

Now that the Loyalists are gone, he could finally enjoy his life with his lover Xue 'Quaram.

**************************** THE END **********************************

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**Author's Notes: *PHEW* That was a nice story wasn't it. This story was actually a test bed for my skill in the genre of putting vague hints that would eventually lead to something big. I have no plans of making a sequel that will continue the story of Creator Chronicle but there are a few side stories in my head. Anyways, enough about that time for the special thanks:**

**Special Thanks:**

**I would like to give this section for the people who helped with this Fan Fiction and those who read it through the end:**

**1. Obviously my family.  
**

**2. sirjamie~ The character Azu 'Zestom is actually his OC, not mine. **

**3. To the people who found the time to read this fan fic and gives reviews as well. I thank you for your time.**

**TIMELINE:  
**

**This Fanfic was made on December 23 2009 and was finished on January 1 2010.**

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If you like what you read and want more,  
Please favorite the story and  
leave some review!**


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